This paper presents a novel real-time Centralized energy management strategy (EMS) for modular electric vehicles. The EMS is based on a local optimization procedure composed of a fuzzy logic controller (FLC) and a restricted rule-based search space for a modular energy system (MES - several fuel cell systems). The FLC is mainly used to determine the required power from four fuel cell systems (FCSs). The rule base is responsible for distributing the power among the FCs by means of a defined cost function, which is based on the required power, hydrogen consumption, and state of charge (SOC) of the battery. The suggested method can be considered as the combination of rule-based and optimization-based strategies, which tries to use the FCS efficiently. The proposed control strategy can be easily implemented into a real- time controller. The results of this work show noticeable improvement in the fuel economy and efficiency of the system.