Wrightbus has completed delivery of 31 Kite Hydroliner hydrogen fuel cell-electric single-deckers to German customer Regionalverkehr Köln in Cologne, and says that it is plotting further expansion into continental Europe.
Those buses are now undergoing testing on Cologne ahead of service entry. Wrightbus claims that it is the fastest-growing bus manufacturer in Europe and points to other orders in Germany for hydrogen buses as evidence of its scope to grow outside the UK.
It says that a service centre has opened in Brühl – around 10 miles southwest of Cologne – and that it is hiring staff to help with the supply of buses into France and the Benelux countries.
In debuting the right-hand drive GB Kite Hydroliner in 2021, Wrightbus said that the design had been configured to allow straightforward reconfiguration for left-hand drive markets, including passive provision for three doors in that format.
CEO Jean-Marc Gales says that the deliveries in Germany represent a solid start to the manufacturer’s aspirations for growth.
“This was by far and away the most technical operation we have faced – these were our first buses for [continental] Europe, after all – and it was very important for everything to be absolutely right before we signed them off,” he continues.
“As well as the buses, we are also delighted to open our European service centre in Brühl enabling our team of experts to service and maintain buses of all types right in the heart of Europe, and we are hiring across the continent to get more buses into operation.”
Mr Gales has thanked Regionalverkehr Köln CEO Dr Marcel Frank and his colleagues for their help in making the supply of the Kite Hydroliner fleet a success.
Along with Wrightbus engineers, designers and production and product staff on the Cologne project, they have “worked tirelessly on this new product to deliver something we can all be immensely proud of.”
