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Saudi Arabia set to begin Middle East’s first hydrogen train trials

Saudi Arabian Railways, in partnership with French manufacturer Alstom, will begin to operate the world’s first hydrogen-powered passenger train in Riyadh later this month.

first tests of Alstom's Coradia iLint Hydrogen train between Reignac-sur-Indre and Loches, central France.
A picture taken on Feb. 1, 2023, shows the first tests of Alstom's Coradia iLint Hydrogen train between Reignac-sur-Indre and Loches, central France. — GUILLAUME SOUVANT/AFP via Getty Images

Trial runs will begin for the first-ever hydrogen-powered passenger train in Riyadh next week, Saudi Arabia’s Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman Al Saud said Sunday.

"It will be on trial for next week, hopefully for the next few months. We will have the first hydrogen train in the Middle East," Prince Abdulaziz said at the UN's MENA Climate Week in Riyadh.

French train manufacturer Alstom’s Coradia iLint will travel 10 to 20 kilometers on SAR's East Network’s Line 1 or Line 2 in Riyadh.

Saudi Arabian Railways, in partnership with Alstom, will operate and demonstrate the world’s first hydrogen-powered passenger train. SAR and Alstom signed a memorandum of understanding in September 2022 to develop hydrogen infrastructure for the desert kingdom. 

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