Hydrogen Fuel Cell Bus Technology State of the ... - NEXTHYLIGHTS

Hydrogen Fuel Cell Bus Technology State of the Art Review
7 Conclusions
This document analysed information available from recent international fuel cell bus
demonstrations and from bilateral dialogues with the members of the Hydrogen Bus
Alliance and key industry stakeholders. The study looks at historical techno-economic
performance of fuel cell buses, cost structure of a hybrid fuel cell bus and the Total Cost
of Ownership in comparison with alternative bus technologies. The main findings can be
summarised as follows:
The fuel cell bus sector is populated by a number of competitors, offering different
expertise and services. The number of competitors in the market has increased over
time, with at least 12 fuel cell bus providers and 9 fuel cell manufacturers competing
for business in the space. The recent demonstration market has however been
dominated by fewer players (in terms of number of buses deployed) – Daimler, New
Flyer and Van Hool within the bus builders and Ballard and UTC within the fuel cell
manufacturers.
Of particular note, only 2-3 out of the six major European OEMs, however, have
significant demonstration experience with hydrogen buses and are actively engaged
in the sector. There is a general consensus among industry players that a wider
participation of the larger players would be beneficial for the sector.
Demonstration activity has occurred in waves, with a major increase in deployment
around 2003, followed by a next wave based on so called „next generation‟ hybrid
fuel cell buses which will enter service in the period 2010-2011. By the end of 2011,
approx. 110 fuel cell buses will be in day to day service worldwide.
The analysis of historical performance data indicated that fuel cell bus performance
is improving in time, evolving towards 2015 targets. The table below provides a
snapshot of the key metrics:
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