Kalmar Partners with SSAB to Design New Hydrogen-powered Forklift Truck

Kalmar, a brand under Cargotec and is well known as a top supplier of cargo handling solutions, has just announced that they are cooperating with Sweden’s steel manufacturer, SSAB, to develop a new medium-range forklift truck that is powered by hydrogen. This move is part of their mission to find a more suitable solution for SSAB, and assist them in contributing in the diminishing of carbon dioxide emissions in the area.

“This is a very good project for SSAB in Oxelösund, where we can now really study the possibilities to reduce our fossil dependence,” stated Jacob Sandberg, the Vice President Production & Product Development at SSAB. “In addition to completely changing the fuel, we also get a better machine,” he added.

According to sources, the industrial truck to be developed will feature a 9-18 ton lift capacity and will use hydrogen gas as its fuel. Its exhaust will only consist of water, therefore, operators can expect to get a more environmentally sound solution for their material handling operations.

As the companies said, this project with last for about two years and will include the truck’s development, demonstration, and series of testing. The forklift will be designed and manufactured by Kalmar to be utilised at the production facility of SSAB in Oxelösund, Sweden.

Kalmar supplies the terminals, ports, and distribution centers with a wide range of cargo handling solutions and services. They also offer a global service network and the ability to enable a seamless terminal processes integration. In fact, currently, they are the industry’s forerunner in energy-efficient container handling and terminal automation, working on one in four container movements around the world. As noted by their Vice President, Thomas Malmborg: “Kalmar’s strategy is to become a leading provider of sustainable solutions for heavy lifting equipment and this initiative demonstrates our aim to co-create with the leading players.”