Universal Hydrogen and Elix Aviation announced a series of agreements to work together on the challenge of developing innovative solutions to reduce the environmental impact of aviation operations.
On the one hand, Universal Hydrogen and Elix Aviation signed a letter of intent for the acquisition of ten conversion kits to be incorporated into aircraft in the lessor’s current fleet, which can then be powered by hydrogen.
Elix Aviation also confirmed the delivery of a Dash 8-300, MSN 274, to the company. It will be used as a test aircraft for further development of its hydrogen propulsion systems.
«Collaborating with Universal Hydrogen is a continuation of our innovative streak in the aviation leasing industry,» said John Moore, CEO of Elix Aviation. «Universal Hydrogen’s mission to decarbonize aviation allows Elix to provide this opportunity for our airline customers. This will help reduce carbon emissions as our industry continues to grow.»
It is critical that aircraft leasing companies, due to their significant importance in the industry, commit to greenhouse gas emission reduction targets. The agreement between Elix Aviation and Universal Hydrogen is a very good sign.
Words from the CEO:
Paul Eremenko, co-founder and CEO of Universal Hydrogen, said, «As our backlog continues to grow with commercial and cargo airlines, lessors, and others, we are also focused on a key goal for 2022: first flight (…). With this agreement with Elix, we have secured our first flight test aircraft. We are already busy working to convert it to run on hydrogen at our Moses Lake, Washington facility».
As part of these agreements, the companies will also collaborate on providing logistics solutions for Elix customers. For this, they will be using Universal Hydrogen fuel. «In the face of rising hydrocarbon fuel costs, particularly with increasing carbon taxes and offset obligations, green hydrogen is expected to be cost-competitive with Jet-A1 fuel by 2025. This will result in additional cost savings,» said a statement issued by the companies.
See also: Universal Hydrogen and Amelia to convert three ATR 72-600s to be hydrogen-powered
