Progress Rail, BNSF Railway Co. (BNSF), and Chevron U.S.A. Inc., a subsidiary of Chevron Corp., have announced a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to advance the demonstration of a locomotive powered by hydrogen fuel cells.
The goal of the demonstration is to confirm the feasibility and performance of hydrogen fuel for use as a viable alternative to traditional fuels for line-haul rail.
Under the MOU, the parties are working toward reaching definitive agreements on a demonstration with three primary objectives. First, Progress Rail plans to design and build a prototype hydrogen fuel cell locomotive for line-haul and/or other types of rail service. Second, Chevron expects to develop the fueling concept and infrastructure to support this use of the locomotive. Finally, the prototype hydrogen fuel cell locomotive is expected to be demonstrated on BNSF's lines for a mutually-agreed-upon period of time.
