Fuel cell electric buses (FCEBs) in Europe will be equipped with 40 FCmoveTM-HD (70kW) modules from Ballard Power Systems beginning in 2022.
France, Germany, and the United Kingdom are all using FCEBs. Using Ballard fuel cell technology, the city of Rouen in France is deploying its first fleet of zero-emission FCEBs, while the city of Pau in France is extending its existing fleet of FCEBs. There are now fuel cell buses in service or under construction in four French cities.
The number of zero-emission FCEBs driven by Ballard fuel cell technology is also increasing in Frankfurt, Germany. Ballard fuel cell buses are already in operation or under construction in six German cities, an increase of three cities over last year.
With a fleet of approximately 500 buses, Brighton, England is the first municipality in the United Kingdom to publicly declare a zero-emissions goal by the year 2030. A total of 20 FCEBs have been ordered by Brighton as part of the FCEB pilot program, which is being supported by the JIVE program and the Ultra Low Emission Bus Scheme in the UK.
Since October 2020, the number of Ballard-powered hydrogen FCEBs in use across Europe has increased by more than 80%. With today’s announcement and the 150 fuel cell modules already ordered from Ballard, the company will be able to deploy a further 150 FCEBs across Europe.
“The hydrogen fuel cell bus market momentum continues to accelerate throughout Europe. In only twelve months, we have expanded from 10 into over 25 cities, across 10 European countries”, said Oben Uluc, Ballard’s Director, European Sales. “With orders in hand to double the number of FCEBs driving passengers on European city streets, we see an exciting forward step change in the adoption of FCEBs. We see a strong growth ramp over the coming decade as our bus OEM customers deliver Ballard-powered FCEBs to transit operators planning to decarbonize their bus fleets.”