Gruber Logistics has used a hydrogen fuel-cell truck for deliveries in Malpensa’s Cargo City, testing the technology in live airport logistics under the OLGA project.
A hydrogen fuel-cell truck has been deployed in Cargo City at Milan Malpensa Airport (MXP), in what is described as the first use of hydrogen in airport logistics operations.
Gruber Logistics operated the vehicle, which entered Pass4Core, the secure parking facility at Cargo City, while awaiting delivery of goods to airport operators. It then made deliveries to the handlers BCUBE AIR CARGO and ALHA. SEA Milan Airports and Edison supported the initiative.
Testing hydrogen in a live cargo environment
The truck was not a technology demonstration alone. It transported goods and completed the related deliveries within Cargo City as part of regular airport logistics, connecting with the airport’s operational and digital processes through the Smart City workflows used to manage shipments and deliveries.
Operating a heavy-duty hydrogen vehicle in Cargo City allows the technology to be tested in a complex environment, where delivery times, access, cargo handling and coordination between operators must work together without disrupting normal airport processes. The aim is to assess hydrogen in a real logistics operation at a major international airport.
Gruber Logistics is also working with Scania on the European ZEFES project, which stands for Zero Emission flexible vehicle platforms with modular powertrains serving the long-haul Freight Eco System. As part of that project, the company is testing a hydrogen fuel-cell heavy-duty vehicle for long-haul transport under real operating conditions. The truck used at Malpensa brings that road transport experience into airport logistics.
The operation forms part of a wider plan to develop a hydrogen ecosystem at Malpensa. Edison is developing a green hydrogen production and distribution hub at the airport, close to the Malpensa Truck SafePark. The objective is to produce hydrogen on site and supply vehicles involved in airport-related operations.
A refuelling point within the airport area could encourage the use of hydrogen-powered vehicles for transport and logistics services connected to the airport. Hydrogen mobility is zero-emission, and the airport has a Net Zero target of 2030.
The trial is part of the European OLGA (hOListic Green Airport) project, funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 programme and aimed at accelerating decarbonisation of the airport sector through solutions in energy, sustainable mobility and airport operations.
SEA Milan Airports takes part in the project through activities focused on energy and hydrogen, developing and testing solutions for hydrogen production, refuelling and use at Malpensa. The Cargo City trial takes that work into the field to assess how hydrogen can become part of the airport’s logistics chain.
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