Ballard Power Systems says 50 fuel cell buses will be operating in regular revenue service among European public transit fleets by the end of 2014. Of those 50 units, 40 of them will feature Ballard technology, the company says.
Next year, Ballard Systems will be powering 27 fuel cell buses manufactured by partner Van Hool NV, Europe's fourth largest bus OEM. The Van Hool buses will be operating in such cities as: Oslo (five buses); Cologne, Germany (two); San Remo, Italy (five); Flanders, Belgium (five); and Aberdeen, Scotland (10). Aberdeen's 10-bus fleet will be the second largest in the world, next to the 20-bus fleet that has been operating in Whistler, Canada, since 2010.
The 40 Ballard-powered buses in Europe will be using the company's 75 kW and 150 kW FCvelocity-HD6 modules.
‘Since fuel cells are a zero-emission solution, this has made the Ballard module an increasingly popular choice of transit authorities as an alternative power technology,’ says Dr. Christopher Guzy, the company's chief technology officer.
