Siemens Smart Infrastructure has obtained an order from Go Bus, one of the biggest bus operators in New Zealand, to supply two of their bus depots with eBuses charging infrastructure.
The order fulfills two separate contracts with Go Bus in Auckland and Christchurch.
In Christchurch, 25 electric buses will be powered by Siemens systems, the first large-scale electric bus fleet in the region. The systems will charge nine buses in Auckland that will run on a new electric airport link.
Operations are expected to begin early in 2021.
New Zealand now boasts more than 80 percent renewable electricity generation. To further accelerate decarbonization, one big lever is the electrification of the transport sector, representing 36 percent of energy usage in New Zealand.
For example , the city of Auckland plans to have a full fleet of zero emissions buses by 2040.
“As a national bus operator, Go Bus needs to be agile and adapt to many fast-moving changes when transitioning to electric bus transport. It’s also important that any investments we make now, take into account rapid advances in battery technology and digitalization. Siemens’ independent charging infrastructure and management software provides us with the most future-proof solutions and flexibility.”
Calum Haslop, CEO of Go Bus.
The Siemens Sicharge UC range offers maximum versatility for bus operators when planning electric bus depots by offering highly efficient infrastructure designed to be tested against rapid developments in battery technology in the future.
It also helps bus operators to extend the charging network economically with up to five dispensers plus one pantographer per charging center.
“We’re proud to see our technology play a pivotal part in fulfilling New Zealand’s low carbon future. It’s critical to have a long-term view of transport infrastructure – one that centers around the effective and efficient use of the right technology and seamless movement of people.
Jeff Connolly, CEO of Siemens Australia Pacific and head of Siemens’ Smart Infrastructure portfolio in the region.
The Christchurch depot’s charging system will consist of 12 Sicharge UC 200 Charging Centers with dispensers supplying 25 parking spaces up to 200 kilowatts (kW). Five of these devices will be available at Auckland, as well as two Sicharge UC 100 stations with a charging capacity of up to 125 kW, delivering a total of nine eBuses.
Both solutions provide plug-in depot charging between scheduled bus services during the day, overnight or for top-up charging according to CCS standard. The Sicharge UC family supports battery voltages up to 1,000 V, from 10 Volt (V).
The reporting and monitoring feature of Siemens’ charging management software will enable Go Bus to track all charging infrastructure centrally across two cities and report key metrics, including electricity savings, easily.
Smart management features would also allow Go Bus to schedule charging to take advantage of lower overnight tariffs while ensuring that individual busses have achieved the required charging level by the time they are needed for operations the next day.
