Solaris could supply nearly 400 hydrogen buses to Italy

Solaris has announced its largest-ever order for hydrogen buses in Europe. Italian transport operator TPER (Trasporto Passeggeri Emilia-Romagna) has ordered 130 fuel cell buses and holds options for another 140 with the Polish manufacturer.

TPER expects to receive 127 Urbino 12 Hydrogen buses for use in Bologna and three for Ferrara. The first 37 hydrogen buses on firm order will be delivered in 2024, the rest in 2025 and 2026. The contract also includes said option for a further 140 Solaris fuel cell buses.

This is in line with the tender TPER released in December 2022. Already at the time, this was among Europe’s largest fuel cell bus projects worth 90 million euros.

Solaris appears to have taken the entire bid, which also exceeds its H2 order catalogue. The company had so far claimed 120 hydrogen buses delivered to “a dozen or so clients” in eight countries.

The Urbino 12 Hydrogen is equipped with a 70 kW fuel cell, which derives hydrogen from five composite tanks placed on the bus roof. With the full tanks that can hold 37.5 kg of hydrogen, the bus can cover about 350 km.

The Bologna City Council had secured funding through the Next Generation EU fund. The fleet renewal is part of the ‘Bologna Mission’ to become a climate-neutral city by 2030. Bologna is one of Italy’s largest cities, with almost 400,000 inhabitants. TPER was created in 2021 by merging the transport divisions of ATC, a road transport company from Bologna and Ferrara, and FER, a regional railway company.

TPER is not the only Italian operator banking on Solaris hydrogen offer. Azienda Veneziana della Mobilita (AVM) has put through an order for 90 hydrogen buses. The 72 solo and 15 articulated fuel cell buses are expected in Venice from November 2025 to early 2026. AVM, too, holds options for another 13 twelve-meter buses and five bendy buses.

Venice is no stranger to Solaris buses and already has 30 battery-powered Urbino 12 and four hydrogen buses in service.

In Italy, the Polish manufacturer is a trusted supplier in a framework agreement by Italy’s central procurement agency, Consip. Under the contract, public transport agencies can order vehicles directly or put them out to tender with selected suppliers such as Solaris.

The company says it has delivered around 1,600 vehicles in Italy, excluding the 400 hydrogen buses. Of those, around a third are low-emission buses with deliveries underway in several cities, including Bergamo, Milan, Venice, and most recently Catania, Sicily.

Solaris presented the current generation of its solo fuel cell bus, Urbino 12, in 2019 in Europe and launched the articulated Urbino 18 Hydrogen in September 2022.

solarisbus.com (Bologna), solarisbus.com (Venice)