Trime to launch fuel cell lighting tower

Trime is set to launch a fuel cell powered lighting tower as an extension of its existing hybrid lighting tower range.

The X-Hydro, which will be commercially available by January 2026, will be powered by a Hymera 200 fuel cell manufactured by BOC using high pressure hydrogen cylinders, with enough capacity to operate for two weeks between bottle replacement.

“People are increasingly asking for alternatives where there’s no emissions and no noise”, said Paul Hay, managing director of Trime UK, “And this is something that is a good fit for that.

Prototype images of Trime’s soon to be launched X-Hydro lighting tower, powered by a hydrogen fuel cell. (Image: Trime)

“The key to it is that the design we are developing is a hybrid system. So, the fuel cell is being used as a recharging power source to the battery pack that powers the lights. We’ve been running with hybrid technology for a number of years now and this is an extension to that.”

He says two BOC hydrogen cylinders – each of which can be fitted in a matter of seconds – will power the tower for up to two weeks.

“That’s the cycle you’re looking for”, he told International Rental News, “If you compare that to a traditional diesel engine lighting tower, it would be a similar refueling cycle, so people are used to that kind of regularity of having to either change cylinders or refuel.”

The unit is based on Trime’s standard X-Eco hybrid tower with a 9m mast, which is produced at Trime’s main manufacturing facility in Italy. That also means the same dimensions, so 12 can be delivered on a standard truck.

Hay told IRN that the fuel cell hybrid would likely see demand in the UK first, followed by markets like the Netherlands.