Sardinia selects Solaris to supply electric buses
Poland’s primary bus maker Solaris has scored a significant order from the Italian island of Sardinia. Placed through Italy’s central procurement agency Consip, Sardinia expects to receive nearly 100 electric buses of type Urbino to arrive next year.
Specifically, the contract comprises 98 Urbino buses, 80 in the 12-metre version and 18 articulated buses measuring 18 metres. Solaris will start delivering the e-buses in batches to CTM Cagliari, the transit operators in the capital city of Sardinia, in 2024 and 2025.
The batteries of the solo buses will carry an energy content of 350 kWh; the bendy buses have batteries with 400 kWh on board. All models will plug in to recharge at the depot via a pantograph en route. The latter can rely on existing infrastructure since Solaris trolleybuses have been in service in Cagliari for some time. Moreover, Solaris is also delivering 18 electric buses from an earlier order this month.
Olivier Michard, Solaris Board Member responsible for Sales, said Solaris was thrilled by CTM Cagliari’s ambitious investment in e-mobility. “We are delighted to be part of this wonderful green transformation in the city’s transport and to provide emission-free and environmentally friendly buses to this Mediterranean gem.”
The new deal by CTM is part of a framework agreement Consip signed in Rome this year. Under the contract, public transport agencies can order vehicles directly or put them out to tender with selected suppliers.
Solaris is among them and says it has delivered around 1,600 vehicles in Italy. Of those, around a third are low-emission buses with deliveries underway in several cities, including Bergamo, Milan, Venice, and most recently to Catania, Sicily.
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