Ballard to power 70 additional Wrightbus fuel cell buses in 2024-25

Ballard Power Systems has announced multiple purchase orders totaling 70 hydrogen fuel cell engines, to be supplied to UK-based bus manufacturer Wrightbus over the next 18 months. Several of the new fuel cell buses will be part of Wrightbus's recent expansion into Germany.

Delivery of the FCmove®-HD fuel cells is expected to occur in 2024, with Wrightbus' fuel cell electric buses entering service next year. Ballard's technology will power the single-deck Kite Hydroliner and double-deck Streetdeck Hydroliner in the UK and Germany.

“We are pleased to strengthen our relationship with Wrightbus and support their deployment of an increasing volume of hydrogen-powered transit buses across the UK and Europe. We are seeing broader market acceptance of fuel cell buses by European transit operators seeking to decarbonize their operations with a technology approach that enables long range, fast refueling, and scalable refueling infrastructure.”

Oben Uluc Vice President, Sales & Marketing, EMEA, Ballard

As part of the overall order of 70 units is a recent agreement with Wrightbus for Ballard to supply 28 zero-emission engines to power the Kite Hydroliner in Germany - entering service for transit operator Saarbahn in Saarbrücken later in 2024.

Saarbahn transports nearly 44 million passengers by road and rail annually. This latest Wrightbus order follows deals to supply West Verkehr and Regionalverkehr in Cologne and will take the total number of Kite Hydroliners on German roads to 90.

The fuel cell bus is powered by Ballard’s FCmove®-HD 70kW rooftop-mounted engine, supported by NMC batteries from Forsee Power, and enjoys fast refueling time, a maximum range of over 1,000km on a single fill; and capacity to carry 90 passengers.

“We are very pleased to provide even more zero-emission buses to support clear net-zero targets. Saarbahn is the largest transport company in Saarland, so adding hydrogen buses to the fleet will have a significant positive impact on the region’s environment.”

Jean-Marc Gales CEO, Wrightbus

The tender procedure for a hydrogen refueling station has also been successfully completed and will be built parallel to the delivery of the Wrightbus fleet at Saarbahn’s bus depot on Saarbrücken – forming an integral part of the operator’s €5m investment to support and develop refueling infrastructure.