10 Solaris hydrogen buses ordered in Düsseldorf

The German operator Rheinbahn Düsseldorf has ordered 10 Solaris Urbino 12 hydrogen buses. The manufacturer will deliver the vehicles to Düsseldorf in 2025, according to plans. The city has set itself the goal of achieving climate neutrality by 2035.

Over the past few months alone, Solaris has landed new orders from Hamburg, Frankfurt, Cologne, Duisburg and Gross Gerau, among other towns and cities. The total number of Solaris hydrogen-powered buses, supplied or ordered so far, has already exceeded 700 units, the manufacturer states. 

Rheinbahn Düsseldorf goes with Solaris for fuel cell buses

The city has been implementing its strategy by adding both battery-electric and hydrogen-powered units to its urban fleet. 20 e-buses by VDL have been ordered in 2023. In December 2020, Rheinbahn had put ten battery-powered buses from Irizar e-mobility into service – eight of which were destroyed four months later in a fire at the bus depot in Heerdt (38 buses in total were affected). These are currently being delivered after Rheinbahn immediately reordered them.

The ordered buses will be powered by green hydrogen, produced exclusively using renewable electricity. Stadtwerke Düsseldorf is investing in a one-megawatt (MW) electrolyzer to produce green hydrogen locally. Rheinbahn is procuring 20 fuel cell buses as part of its transition to climate-friendly vehicles. These buses will be refueled at an H2 MOBILITY filling station located on the Stadtwerke’s premises in Flingern. It is expected to be built on the Stadtwerke’s premises no later than mid-2024. Until then, Rheinbahn’s buses will refuel with hydrogen at Oerschbachstraße in Düsseldorf-Reisholz.

The 12-metre hydrogen buses will feature a 70 kW Ballard hydrogen fuel cell, which will be supported by Solaris High Power batteries. The bus will also be equipped with a wide range of systems compliant with GSR2 requirements, which will provide passengers and drivers with the highest levels of safety.

“Solaris has been continuously promoting sustainable transport by offering the widest range of zero-emission vehicles. Our partnership with Düsseldorf dates back to 2005, and it has included, among other things, purchases of electric buses. I am very pleased that our hydrogen buses will also serve the residents of Düsseldorf as part of its municipal public transport as soon as next year”, said Olivier Michard, Member of the Solaris Management Board for Sales and Marketing.