Dutch military gets its first hydrogen trucks: MAN hTGX for heavy duty

The Dutch Ministry of Defence is taking a first step toward making its heavy transport more sustainable. The Systems Section of the Materiel Logistics Command (MatlogCo) has handed over three remarkable new trucks to the Operational Support Command Land (OOCL). They are TRK 165kN H2 ICE units from manufacturer MAN Truck & Bus – known at MAN as the hTGX.

A combustion engine running on hydrogen

What makes these trucks special is that they don't use a fuel cell, but a combustion engine running on hydrogen. It is essentially a modified petrol or diesel engine: at MAN, the H45 engine, good for around 520 hp and 2,500 Nm of torque.

That brings a practical advantage. The trucks don't need a heavy battery pack to qualify as emission-free under the law, while the drivetrain is virtually identical to that of a familiar diesel or petrol vehicle. This keeps maintenance relatively simple and lets Defence build on technology that has proven itself for years. Less battery weight also means more energy and payload capacity left for the actual load.

The figures

The vehicles have tanks that hold around 56 kilograms of hydrogen at a pressure of 700 bar. That gives the combination a range of about 600 kilometres, assuming a combined tractor-and-trailer weight of 40,000 kg. Refuelling takes less than fifteen minutes – comparable to diesel. It is no surprise the MAN hTGX won the international Truck Innovation Award 2025.

Deployment in the line service

As the standard-setter for this type of materiel, MatlogCo wants to investigate whether the trucks fit within Defence's heavy transport. The 210 Regional Transport Company of the OOCL will deploy the vehicles for what is known as the line service, transporting general cargo, materiel and fuel. To get started right away, the Defence Fuels Company handed over fuel cards during the transfer, allowing crews to refuel at all hydrogen stations in the Netherlands.

Why hydrogen makes sense here

For heavy and operational transport, hydrogen has appealing qualities. Fast refuelling and ample range suit trips where standstill is costly – because a driver who has to wait still gets paid. Grid congestion also plays a role: in many places the electricity grid is full, making it hard to simply connect heavy fast chargers everywhere. And the claim that "electricity is cheaper" doesn't tell the whole story: battery-electric heavy transport requires investment in grid connections, cabling, fast chargers and sometimes on-site storage and solar panels. Hydrogen puts far less strain on the grid, mainly at the moment of refuelling.

Alongside battery-electric solutions, this project shows that hydrogen is a fully fledged zero-emission option, particularly for the heaviest and most demanding tasks. The fact that Defence is exploring this route too underlines how broadly hydrogen is now being applied.

Sources:

• MatlogCo / Dutch Ministry of Defence (LinkedIn, defensie.nl)
• BigTruck – bigtruck.nl
• TTM – ttm.nl
• MAN Truck & Bus – nieuws.man-trucks.nl
• Alles over Waterstof – allesoverwaterstof.nl