Canadian Pacific Kansas City Rail (CPKC) Hydrogen-Powered Locomotive

Dr. Kyle Mulligan, Assistant Vice President – Operations Technology, CPKC Rail, Calgary
Kyle Mulligan, AVP of Operations Technology at Canadian Pacific Kansas City, is responsible for overseeing CPKC’s hydrogen locomotive, advanced analytics, standards, wayside detection, train dynamics and marshalling, and incident investigation programs. More simply put, Kyle uses data and technology to help ensure CPKC continues to operate the safest Class 1 railroad in North America for 16 years running. Kyle strives to deliver results on time and on budget, while also mentoring those around him. He is a trained and qualified locomotive engineer, conductor, freight car inspector, welder, and leadership coach. He has used his first-hand experience to further understand impacts of the systems that he designs for operations in the field including innovative technologies such as: broken rail detection in dark territory; predictive acoustic bearing failure technology; and cracked wheel detectors and top of rail surface scanning systems. Kyle holds a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Sherbrooke in addition to degrees in computer systems, electrical, and biomedical engineering. He is a two-time recipient of CPKC’s CEO Award for Excellence, was named as one of Railway Age’s 2018 top 10 under 40, CPKC’s 2019 Railroad of the Year, and has received back-to-back 2018/2019 Railway Association of Canada safety awards. He is an active member of the community as a mentor with FIRST, a group that inspires young people’s interest and participation in science and technology. 

Canadian Pacific Kansas City Rail's Hydrogen Locomotive Program announced work on the H2OEL in December 2020, a retrofit of an existing diesel-electric linehaul locomotive with hydrogen fuel cell and battery technology to power the unit’s electric traction motors. Ballard Power Systems is supplying six 200-kilowatt fuel cell modules, which will provide a total of 1.2 megawatts of electricity to power the locomotive. On March 10, 2021, CPKC President and CEO Keith Creel told attendees of Railway Age’s Next-Gen Freight Rail conference that the Program locomotive was to be operational by the end of 2022. At that time, the railroad has said it “will conduct rail service trials and qualification testing to evaluate the technology’s readiness for the freight-rail sector.” That locomotive now has accumulated more than 1,000 miles of testing in revenue service. CPKC may produce two additional locomotives if the concept proves reliable. While the Class I railroad is not looking to become a locomotive manufacturer, Mr Creel told Railway Age conference attendees, its vision is to partner with an OEM in the future to “benefit CPKC and the North American [railroad] landscape.” The CPKC website notes that the project is “globally significant” which “positions CPKC at the leading edge of decarbonizing the freight transportation sector. CPKC will continue to focus on finding innovative solutions to transform our operations and implement our Climate Strategy, positioning CPKC and our industry as leaders for a sustainable future.”