Cookies on Zenoot

This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. More info

2 minute read - 5th September 2024

Wrightbus unveils hydrogen coach demostrator

Wrightbus, the fastest-growing bus manufacturer in the UK and Europe, has taken the wraps off the latest stage of its hydrogen coach development following successful government funding.

Its CEO described the latest zero-emission coach iteration, a 300kw hydrogen coach demonstrator unveiled at the Cenex Expo, as a significant step forward in the road to decarbonising the public transport industry. He said he was hugely grateful to the support of the Department for Business and Trade, delivered through the Advanced Propulsion Centre UK (APC), and with partners including Queen’s University Belfast and Symbio.

On the back of five landmark deals in Germany and a workforce heading towards 2,000 people, the company has also launched NewPower, a manufacturing wing which strips out diesel bus engines and replaces them with EV powertrains. Wrightbus has come a long way since it was rescued out of administration by Jo Bamford in 2019.

Wrightbus has taken the wraps off the latest stage of its hydrogen coach development programme / Picture: Wrightbus

Never miss the latest manufacturing news by signing up to our newsletter here

Jean-Marc Gales, CEO of Wrightbus, said: “For years, Wrightbus has led the way in transport innovation, producing the world’s first hydrogen-powered bus and an award-winning battery-electric version, now both sold all around the world. But there is no room for standing still; innovation has been at the core of our business since we were founded in 1946 and we continue to plough enormous amounts of time, money and effort into staying ahead of the curve.

“While buses have been in the Wrightbus DNA since day one we know that to have a real impact on public transport we must tackle the decarbonisation of coaches. Yet they have different needs – they must go further for longer and carry much higher payloads. Although the demonstrator on show at Cenex is not the finished article, we have worked heavily on creating a new driveline and our testing shows it can cover 1,000kms on one refuelling.”


This content is copyright of Zenoot Ltd and its originator. You can use extracts, share or link to this page and you may draw the attention of others to content posted on our site. Bulk copying of text is not permitted. You can view our Terms of Use here.