Palma de Mallorca’s Municipal Transport Company (EMT) presented the first three green hydrogen buses, which will join their fleet in the coming days on different routes. After the opening ceremony, those present were able to try out the new vehicles on a route from Plaça de Cort to Consolat. EMT will be the first customer of the green hydrogen plant in Lloseta, the first industrial renewable hydrogen plant in Spain, which is part of the Power to Green Hydrogen Mallorca project led by Enagás Renovable and ACCIONA Energía. Calvera has provided the hydrogen infrastructure to supply it to the new buses.
“Today we are sending a clear signal and making Palma a national role model, as we are the second city in Spain with green hydrogen buses,” said the Mayor of Palma Jose Hila. “When we took office, we found we had an outdated public transport system, with old vehicles, and we have successfully turned things around. We are clearly committed to innovation, and this has been possible thanks to coordination and our ability to reach agreements.”
“In the Balearic Islands, we have been leading the way in promoting a fair energy transition since 2015,” commented the President of the Government of the Balearic Islands Francina Armengol. “We are making a revolution in mobility.”
Antón Martínez, CEO of Enagás Renovable, stated: “The main objective of the European Green Hysland initiative coordinated by Enagás Renovable, which has led to the construction of the first industrial renewable hydrogen plant in Spain, in Mallorca, is decarbonisation. The commissioning of hydrogen buses in Palma is a decisive step in this direction.”
“The commissioning of these buses is an important milestone for the Power to Green Hydrogen Mallorca project as the first offtaker in the mobility sector at our green hydrogen plant in Lloseta,” added Belén Linares, Chair of the Board of Power to Green Hydrogen Mallorca and Innovation Director of ACCIONA Energía. “This initiative is a paradigm of ACCIONA Energía’s commitment to decarbonisation and our commitment to development and research to develop innovative solutions to the most important challenges of our time.”
The new three green hydrogen buses, which are part of five acquired by EMT, are another step in Palma’s commitment to sustainable mobility and new fuels. This makes Palma the second Spanish city, after Barcelona, to have a fleet of vehicles powered by green hydrogen fuel cells. The five 12-meter buses were put out to tender for 4.8 million euros and were manufactured by Solaris.
The new bus model was funded by the Balearic Islands government under the Capital Status Act and is part of the European Green Hysland project, which also includes Power to Green Hydrogen Mallorca. Power to Green HM aims to create the necessary infrastructure for the development of a renewable hydrogen ecosystem on the island of Mallorca and to contribute to the environmental objectives set by the Balearic Government on the islands.
Through the Clean Hydrogen Partnership, the European Union, has provided 10 million euros for the implementation of this project, which has also received funding from the Institute for Energy Diversification and Saving (IDAE) of the Ministry of Ecological Change and the Demographic Challenge under the Moves Singular Projects program.
The new hydrogen buses are part of the second phase of EMT Palma’s fleet renewal, which will gradually include up to 65 new vehicles. When this phase is completed, EMT Palma will have renewed more than 90% of its fleet since 2015.
Source: Enagás
