In place of batteries, a hydrogen charge and a fuel cell capable of generating the electricity needed for pedal assistance. This is the H2 bike — or rather, a working ebike prototype that uses approximately 30 grams of gas stored in a cylinder, together with oxygen from the air, to produce electricity.

Built by engineers at the Linde Group, a German multinational committed to developing hydrogen technology, the ebike is capable of travelling up to 100 kilometres on a full tank, at virtually zero emissions.

"Linde is experimenting with new and unconventional ideas to help advance the commercialisation of hydrogen as a clean technology," explained Wolfgang Büchele, chief executive of Linde Group. "With the H2 bike we have demonstrated that the benefits of hydrogen mobility are not restricted to cars, but that bicycles are another interesting application." The Group is indeed strongly committed to developing this technology, both in the sustainable production of the gas and in building a fast and safe refuelling network.

Of course, as the company itself points out, hydrogen must be produced using energy from renewable sources in order for this to be energetically and environmentally sustainable — as is the case, for example, at the Energiepark Mainz in Germany, where Siemens, in collaboration with Linde itself, has built a plant for the production of hydrogen from wind power. Here the gas is produced both for use as a fuel and to store surplus energy from nearby wind farms, as well as to generate electricity wherever demand is greatest.

By using hydrogen technology, the need for lithium batteries is also eliminated, the Group explains in a statement — batteries that at the end of their life would in any case need to be processed and treated to prevent them from becoming hazardous waste.

For now this is a limited series, produced in just over three months. But it seems a safe bet that hydrogen ebikes could soon become part of our daily lives.