Indian automaker Tata Motors is targeting the commercial launch of its hydrogen engine-powered truck within 12 to 24 months, a senior executive at the company has said, putting the conglomerate in line to be one of the first to do so.
Speaking on the sidelines of a mobility exhibition and conference in New Delhi this week, Tata Motors executive director Girish Wagh also told news agency Press Trust of India that the company is also about to deploy its new hydrogen truck on India’s roads as part of a pilot programme.
Tata Motors, part of giant Indian conglomerate Tata, used the Bharat Mobility Global Expo in New Delhi to unveil its new “Prima H 28” hydrogen truck, which will be fitted with a hydrogen internal combustion engine (H2-ICE).
The firm has a tie-in with US engine maker Cummins, with whom it is now operating an H2-ICE factory in India.
The pilot project, which is being carried out in partnership with state-owned refiner Indian Oil, will see the trucks deployed along three routes: from Mumbai, on India’s west coast, to Pune (150km); from Jamshedpur in the northeastern province of Jharkhand to Kalinganagar (400km); and from Mumbai to the northwestern city of Ahmedabad (520km).
Tata did not reveal how many trucks would be deployed as part of the pilot, but Wagh said the programme would be used to collect data to improve the operation of the vehicles, as well as refuelling infrastructure.
The company’s ambition could see it launch the Prima H model as soon as January 2026 — or as late as January 2027.
However Tata may not be the first. In October last year, rival Indian truckmaker Ashok Leyland promised to produce the first of its hydrogen-engine-powered trucks within 18-24 months, suggesting that those models could hit the road by April 2026.
