FPT Industrial H2 engine features in new snow groomer

Prinoth Leitwolf H2Motion snow groomer (Photo: FPT Industrial)

FPT Industrial has supplied its new XC13 hydrogen internal combustion engine for the Prinoth Leitwolf H2Motion snow groomer.

The new machine was presented at the FIS Alpine Ski World Cup meeting in Flachau, Austria, where president and CEO of Prinoth Group, Klaus Tonhäuser, was taking part in the ‘Sustainability in Winter Sports’ discussion. The meeting reviewed new tech which could reduce the environmental impact of activities related to skiing.

First unveiled at the IAA 2022 trade show in Hanover, the H2 XC13 ICE is a 13-litre, six-cylinder model which can deliver 460 hp (338 kW) and 2000 Nm of torque.

“Unveiled in September 2022, [the engine is] now ready for its first field test,” said Pierpaolo Biffali, vice president of Product Engineering at FPT Industrial. “Such a short timeframe reveals the unique quality of our XC13 engine.”

Based on the injection hardware setup the engine can use a series of fuel types. In addition to hydrogen, the XC13 can use natural gas (including biomethane) and renewable fuels.

“The FPT Industrial engine of the Leitwolf H2Motion is similar to a diesel engine,” said Klaus Tonhäuser. “It offers our customers what they are used to from other machines. This will contribute to the acceptance of the technology.”

In this particular application, the hydrogen fuel is stored in five tanks mounted on the back of the machine. The fuel can support three hours of operation.

Due to its power and size, the Leitwolf H2Motion is designed for preparing slopes at larger ski resorts. It is reported that grooming of the ski slopes at Snow Space Saltzburg Bergbahnen, organiser of the sustainability event, is the activity which now results in the largest amount of CO2 emissions.