Wrightbus wins deal to provide up to 150 hydrogen buses for nuclear power station

Ballymena bus manufacturer Wrightbus has signed a deal with a nuclear power station project which could lead to one of the largest bus fleets of its kind in the world.  The company has signed up to provide up to 150 hydrogen buses for the site of Sizewell C in Suffolk.

Sizewell C, owned by EDF Energy and the UK Government, has ordered four Hydroliners from the company to test if they can be used in the construction of the power station.

The Street deck Hydroliners will be part of a pilot scheme to test their suitability for transporting thousands of workers to and from the construction site near Leiston, Suffolk.

But a company spokesman said it had no figure yet for the potential value of the deal.

Sizewell C will test the operational performance of the double decker buses, which are cleaner than diesel or petrol-powered vehicles as hydrogen fuel doesn’t produce carbon emissions.

If the pilot is successful, Sizewell C will order up to 150 buses, making it one of the largest hydrogen bus fleets in the world.

The four buses in the pilot scheme are expected to be delivered in early next year and will be among the first hydrogen buses in Suffolk.

Julia Pyke, joint managing director of Sizewell C, said: “Once it starts generating, Sizewell C will be one of the biggest generators of low carbon electricity in the country.

“Our plans for hydrogen buses show we are determined that the construction of the power station will also be as clean as possible.

“A hydrogen fleet will lower our carbon emissions and reduce the impact of workforce transport on local communities.

“At the same time, I am excited that we will potentially kickstart a market for this important low-carbon fuel in the east of England.”

Wrightbus chief executive Jean-Marc Gales said: “We are delighted to be working with Sizewell C on this pilot and the fact that it could lead to a fleet of up to 150 hydrogen buses is testament to the potential hydrogen has for both passenger transport and construction sites.

“We continue to invest in hydrogen technology as a driver to developing cleaner, more efficient transport solutions.”

According to Wrightbus, Sizewell C is also paving the way for hydrogen-powered equipment to be used on large construction sites.

The project is part of a consortium led by Wrightbus’s sister company Ryze, which has just been awarded more than £3m of Government funding to test a mobile hydrogen refuelling system. If successful, the technology could eventually reduce the need to use fossil fuels in machinery and equipment.