Chełm has selected a supplier of 26 zero-emission, eco-friendly hydrogen buses. These will be NesoBuses manufactured by PAK-PCE Polish Hydrogen Bus at its new factory in nearby Świdnik. Chełm, as the only city in Poland with a population of around 60,000, will have public transport based almost exclusively on hydrogen buses.
The value of the order, including delivery and service, is approximately PLN 97 million, or PLN 3.73 million per zero-emission vehicle. The manufacturer will have six months to deliver the first batch of 5 of its NesoBuses. All buses will be delivered by 30 October 2025.
This is, so far, the largest single order for FCEV buses in Poland. Previously, 25 hydrogen buses were ordered by Poznań, and 20 by Walbrzych, plus an additional 25 as an option. Both tenders were won by Solaris Bus & Coach. PAK-PCE Polish Hydrogen Bus, also, it has so far won orders from Rybnik (20 vehicles) and Gdańsk (10 units on long-term lease).
The purchase of hydrogen buses would not have been possible without the support of the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management. Chełm received PLN 100.4 million in subsidies under priority programme no. 3.9 ‘Protection of the atmosphere Green public transport (Phase I)’. The contracting authority intended to allocate nearly PLN 112 million to finance the contract.
As of 2018, the Chełm Bus Lines network consists of 32 Mercedes-Benz O530 Citaro buses, purchased on the second-hand market, which operate on 12 routes, with 23 vehicles required on weekdays to operate the entire service.
The NesoBus, produced at the Świdnik plant launched at the end of last year, is a MAXI bus. It is 12 m long and takes up to 93 passengers, including 37 seats. The bus consumes on average about 7-8 kg of hydrogen per 100 km. The tanks have a capacity of 37.5 kg of hydrogen, which translates into a range of about 450 km. Refuelling, the manufacturer assures, takes only 15 minutes.
Arkadiusz Słomczyński