Caetano signalled its intent in the UK zero-emission bus market with the launch of a 10.7m, right-hand drive H2.City Gold hydrogen fuel cell-powered single-decker at Busworld Brussels.
It complements the e.City Gold battery-electric bus. 34 of those – also 10.7m in length – have been ordered by Abellio London for delivery next year. The H2.City Gold utilises a Toyota fuel cell system. It will deliver a range of 400km and a fill time of under nine minutes, Caetano says.
Except for some minor pipework, both buses are identical below the cantrail. The City Gold platform is entirely low floor and both models will also be available at 12m. One, two or three doors are possible.
Caetano fuel cell suits longer range applications
Caetano says that between them, they allow virtually all single-deck applications to be converted to zero emission. It has already achieved European Community Whole Vehicle Type Approval for the e.City Gold. The same accreditation is being pursued for the H2.City Gold.
The manufacturer adds that economics dictate that the battery-electric variant is better suited to applications where the range needed is shorter. The fuel cell model is best used on higher-mileage duties.
Nevertheless, Caetano points out that where large fleets of zero-emission buses are procured, the support infrastructure’s cost and the extent of its complication within the depot environment may favour hydrogen over batteries regardless of the range requirement.
For instances where enough on-board energy capacity for a more than a 300km range is necessary, Caetano is aiming for price parity between both City Gold models. It accepts that for below that, hydrogen power will prove more expensive. However, a H2.City Gold is over 1,000kg lighter than a comparable e.City Gold.
Double-deckers to follow?
The e.City Golds for Abellio London will utilise DC charging. That suits its depot environments; cables with DC can be longer than those for AC, allowing greater flexibility with infrastructure placement.
Zenobe Energy will supply the charging infrastructure for the Abellio buses. Batteries within the depot will charge during the day from the mains supply. That energy will subsequently be transferred to the buses. As a result, it will not be necessary to upgrade the existing grid connection.
Caetano has also confirmed that it is considering bringing zero-emission double-deckers to the UK in due course, in both battery electric and hydrogen fuel cell form. While the driveline technology will be shared with the single-deck buses, the chassis would be “completely different”.
