Dutch glass firm goes for a hydrogen Hilux: 'I would rather be out in front'
Glass company Van Ooijen in Landgraaf, in the south of the Netherlands, is about to take delivery of a striking commercial vehicle: a Toyota Hilux running on hydrogen. For owner Francesco van Ooijen it is not a side experiment but the next step in an approach that has been running for years.
Paris was the eye-opener
The idea took shape at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. Van Ooijen was there at Toyota's invitation and saw how widely hydrogen was already being used: buses, taxis and even wheelchairs ran on it. A presentation by senior Toyota executives from Japan tipped the balance. The plans became concrete enough that Toyota Motor Europe representatives later travelled to Landgraaf to brief a small group of entrepreneurs.
What a hydrogen Hilux is
The hydrogen version of the Hilux started as a prototype fleet of ten vehicles built at Toyota Motor Manufacturing UK in Derby. Beneath the load bed sits fuel cell technology from the Toyota Mirai: a stack of 330 cells delivering up to 134 kW and 300 Nm. The hydrogen is held in three tanks of 2.6 kilos each, 7.8 kilos in total, giving an expected range of up to around 600 kilometres.
Toyota has announced it will add a hydrogen-electric Hilux to its line-up in 2028, so Van Ooijen is running ahead of the schedule. His vehicle is currently being adapted by Toyota to carry large sheets of glass.
A company already years into the transition
Van Ooijen Glas dates back to 1937 and employs twenty-five people. Sustainability there stopped being optional some time ago. Major clients such as insurers Interpolis and Centraal Beheer increasingly expect suppliers to cut their CO2 emissions. That goes beyond transport: leftover glass is collected for reuse and workwear is made from recycled textile fibres. "Our clients expect us to think about everything," Van Ooijen says.
The fleet now counts ten electric vans, with a single diesel kept on hand for urgent jobs and exceptionally long trips. Electric driving works well, especially with the solar panels on the company roof keeping energy costs low. For the long runs Van Ooijen wants hydrogen alongside it: filling up takes a few minutes and the range is higher.
Doing the maths
Like any business owner, Van Ooijen compared his options first: petrol, electric and hydrogen. With a twenty per cent subsidy the Hilux came out at a net investment of roughly 75,000 euros. "On balance this was actually the least expensive option for us."
He is realistic about what still needs to happen. Hydrogen costs more than the solar power he generates himself, and the number of refuelling stations is still limited. Even so, he sees enough prospect to step in now.
Refuelling around the corner
Part of what makes the move practical is location. The Minli hydrogen station is virtually next door. It opened in September 2025 on the Marconistraat in Landgraaf as the first hydrogen refuelling station in South Limburg, with dispensers for both 350 and 700 bar and a capacity of up to a thousand kilos of hydrogen a day. Passenger cars and heavy trucks can both fill up there.
That proximity makes the difference. A hydrogen vehicle is only as strong as the filling point nearby, and in Landgraaf that box is now ticked.
Looking ahead pays off
Van Ooijen argues that business owners should dare to anticipate changes such as the zero-emission zones that have applied to vans and trucks in dozens of Dutch cities since 2025. "Anyone who failed to do that is paying for it now. The warnings have been out there for three or four years."
The hydrogen Hilux fits the same philosophy: experiment, learn, look ahead. "I would rather be out in front and bump my nose once, because that is how you learn. Being late is never good."
Sources
- De Limburger, Glasondernemer kiest voor waterstofbus: 'Ik loop liever voorop', 24 July 2026
- MobilityEnergy.com, Minli opens the first hydrogen station in South Limburg in Landgraaf, 1 September 2025
- Toyota, Hydrogen Hilux development reaches next project phase
- Toyota Netherlands, New Toyota Hilux
- Dutch government and KVK, information on zero-emission zones
