Public Funding for Bamford Bus Company Limited

**CoacH2 -- Next generation hydrogen fuel-cell coach powertrain demonstrator** **Delivered by a Northern Irish consortium spanning OEM, operator and academia this project will accelerate the development of zero-emission fuel-cell electric coaches, with a full on-vehicle technology demonstrator to be manufactured and showcased as part of CENEX LCV 2024\.** Coaches are an integral part of the public transport network, with over 30,000 diesel coaches operating across the UK and Ireland. Due to the demanding coach operation (high speed, long range, heavy passenger and luggage loading) decarbonisation options for this sector are extremely limited with hydrogen fuel-cell technology considered the most viable choice. This project will tackle this difficult to decarbonise sector by developing, testing and validating an innovative hydrogen fuel-cell powertrain suitable for coach applications. Consortium leaders, Wrightbus are an established pioneer in zero-emission technology having launched the UK's first hydrogen double-deck fuel cell buses, the world's most efficient double-deck battery-electric bus and the world's first double deck fuel-cell electric bus. Working alongside, Translink, Northern Ireland's largest public transport operator and Queen's University Belfast, a member of Russell Group of 24 UK research intensive universities, the project will accelerate the development of innovative powertrain technology capable of capturing and securing national and international market opportunity. To achieve these ambitions three specific themes will be addressed: 1. Development of hydrogen fuel-cell powertrain with design process informed by intensive operational demands and utilising advanced simulation capabilities / modelling methodologies to guide optimum component configurations. Innovative approaches will be deployed to address the significant technical challenges of large cooling requirements, packaging and sufficient on-board hydrogen storage. 2. Measuring in-service operational efficiency via extensive testing -- with demonstrator vehicle undertaking shadow service of existing Translink routes to confirm functionality and reliability. 3. Development of a toolkit for evaluating whole-life energy, cost and carbon of zero emission coaches with the aim of informing strategies and rapidly enabling decarbonisation. Replacing current diesel internal combustion coaches in operation on UK roads would have significant benefits for the environment and human health, with estimates of: * 1,670-million litres of diesel being displaced, * 4.2 million tonnes of CO2 mitigated, * 14.4 thousand tonnes of NOX avoided, * 412 tonnes of particulate matter not released to the atmosphere, Economic & social benefits will also include the creation of skilled jobs, stimulating significant economic activity in the UK economy. This industrially-led high value collaborative research will also support developments in other heavy duty automotive sectors.

Delivered by a **consortium spanning OEM, supply chain, operator and academia**, the Developing Next-Generation Common-Platform Fuel-Cell and Battery-Electric Multi-Axle Buses, or **"NextGenZEB" project aims to develop a new world leading, commercially competitive solution for zero-emission tri-axle and articulated bus vehicle configurations**. The project will leverage emerging technologies in global supply chain risk management, multiscale modelling and digital twinning to produce **'best in class' lightweight, modular and efficient solutions suitable for both battery electric and fuel cell configurations**. Most critically, through the **adoption of a common-platform approach, vehicle development timelines will be reduced lowering total cost of ownership and securing UK market leadership in the sector**. These ambitious goals will be achieved by * Delivering innovative approaches to the production of **lightweight, modular and efficient multi-axle vehicle platforms suitable for both battery electric and fuel cell electric configurations**. The consortium brings together a collaboration across the supply chain to provide a unique multi-faceted insight into the market requirements, development process and vehicle in-service evaluation; * **Investigate the impact of external factors on the UK bus industry, and to develop new methods for quantifying global supply chain risks.** With increasing global uncertainty and rising material costs, the project will deliver new understanding of the sensitivities of the bus sector to external market variations, and identify new business approaches to increase resilience of the UK supply chains. * **Develop a novel 'digital twin' capability to enhance development and in-service vehicle performance optimization.** With increasing access to in-service data through telematics and opportunities to understand how real-time data can be used to underpin decision making. By replacing incumbent diesel & hybrid vehicles, projected sales to 2034 would see **6.8 million tonnes of CO2 and 2,710-million litres of diesel mitigated globally**. Through the high value engineering activity across the entirety of the supply chain, this project has the potential to see **long-term benefits after project completion with up to 420 jobs** projected to be created and safeguarded in addition to up to **1114 individuals upskilled**.

The Teesside Hydrogen Vehicle Ecosystem seeks to solve a problem that has constrained the development of the hydrogen mobility sector -- the inability to scale hydrogen supply infrastructure to achieve sufficient economies of scale to make the production and supply of hydrogen and vehicle support infrastructure affordable. The project's solution to this problem is to test the feasibility of a complementary multimodal approach, introducing a range of hydrogen heavy- and light-duty vehicles across the Tees Valley region, centred around the Tees Valley Airport. Toyota GB, the project lead and a global leader in the hydrogen sector, will demonstrate several use cases for their pioneering fuel cell technology. It is planned for ten Toyota Mirais to be offered to operate in high utility commercial operations such as response units for the Tees Valley Police, health service and taxis. The same fuel cell technology will be showcased in a Caetano single-deck bus in operation with Stagecoach. Wrightbus will complement the deployment by providing a double-decker bus to Arriva, demonstrating the technology for heavy-duty and high duty-cycle applications. A Toyota supplied materials handling unit will also be operated at Tees Valley Airport. The primary aim of this project is to show that fuel cell technology is effective in a wide range of applications and that a multimodal system at a city/regional level can help the hydrogen sector achieve scales of demand otherwise not possible. These hydrogen demands will also have a positive impact across the hydrogen value chain in the region, allowing local production facilities to scale up, achieving cost benefits. Additionally, the vehicles deployed as part of this project will displace fossil fuel vehicles and will abate ~2,100 tonnes of CO2 over the course of their operational lifetime (35 tonnes over the 3-month trial), while reducing local air and noise pollution. The project positions the Tees Valley as the first multimodal hydrogen hub in the UK. The success of this project, and the city transport hub concept, paves the way for a series of similar hubs to be initiated, forming the backbone of a wider hydrogen network for mobility across the UK. The creation of these hubs can encourage the wider deployment of hydrogen vehicles across the UK, scaling up manufacturing and bringing costs down. This helps to start a new national green hydrogen industry, with associated high-value jobs, and positions the UK as a global leader in the hydrogen mobility market.

NextGen Fuel-Cell Electric Buses to Accelerate a Low-Carbon Hydrogen Economy or "NextGenFCEV" aims to develop world leading, in terms of TCO and efficiency, single and double deck fuel cell electric buses for the UK marketplace and export. This project addresses the aim of the competition in accelerating the development of a zero-tailpipe emission fuel-cell electric bus. By replacing incumbent diesel vehicles, projected global FCEV sales will mitigate 15.6-million tonnes of CO2 and 5,744-million litres of diesel by 2031/32\. 51 R&D and 2,335 production jobs (including apprentices) will be created. 1,035 R&D and manufacturing jobs will be safeguarded. The project has there specific themes: 1\.**Development of next-generation hydrogen fuel-cell electric buses** that are cost effective, lightweight and modular, to accommodate UK and export markets. After pioneering the world's first double-deck hydrogen fuel-cell bus, Wrightbus will collaborate efforts to explore optimal propulsion, energy storage and thermal management configurations with Grayson Thermal Systems(GTS) and Queen's University Belfast. Operator input via Translink will guide overall design, performance, market requirements and conduct field trials. 2\.**Strengthening UK based assembly and manufacturing capabilities to produce zero-emission technologies at scale.** Modular architectures (not common in the bus industry)will enable higher volume production and lower the cost of goods to the consumer. With guidance from Ryse Hydrogen, installation of on-site hydrogen re-fuelling and charging infrastructure will further reduce development and testing timescales. Close collaboration with GTS will add resilience to UK supply chains and encourage UK OEMs, such as JCB, to develop advanced hydrogen storage solutions. 3\.**Introduce a 'Hydrogen Centre of Excellence' to support upskilling and knowledge sharing in the UK.** The centre will build upon strong academic links between Wrightbus and QUB to provide training and education of all aspects of the hydrogen economy, share best practice, and generate new sources of revenue. Feasibility studies in to pathways for low-cost, low-carbon hydrogen fuel production in the UK will be undertaken. Further innovation and collaborative research will be possible with technology transfer to coach, truck and off-highway applications. Ryse Hydrogen will also use the centre to conduct a study into lowering product costs of Green Hydrogen in the UK in partnership with QUB.

"NextGenEV will develop an electric powertrain architecture for energy efficient buses. Wrightbus has successfully developed three generations of ""micro-hybrid"" architecture and a low cost high efficiency Hybrid bus with the""NextGenHyBus"" project. These systems are designed to maximise energy efficiency to power ancillary systems and vehicle propulsion. The company also have a solid foundation in delivering battery electric buses, with over ten years' experience in development of these vehicles using commercially available powertrain technology. The NextGenEV programme will build on this experience of delivering innovative, competitive vehicle platforms to develop a new, highly efficient, zero-emissions bus with lower total cost of ownership and maximisation of passenger numbers, key to achieving long term sustainability of battery electric vehicles on the UK roads and globally. The powertrain will be developed as a modular system, allowing the technology developed through this work to be demonstrated for both single and double deck buses. The project will examine a range of possible architectures with specific provision made for vehicle systems with a significant air-conditioning and heating loads, often a significant factor in reducing the available range of battery electric buses. The motor generator unit and its associated controller will be developed in partnership with Zapi UK. Extensive modelling simulation and testing activities will be undertaken by Queen's University Belfast. Vehicle trials will be undertaken by Go-Ahead Group."

NexGenHyBus will develop a mild hybrid architecture for fuel efficient buses. Wrightbus has successfully developed three generations of "micro-hybrid" architecture. These systems recuperate braking energy and use it to power ancillary systems rather than vehicle propulsion. NexGenHyBus will build on previous micro hybrid architectures. Retaining those system features of extensive ancillary electrification, drive assist will be added at a fraction of the cost of a full (high voltage) hybrid system. The project will examine a range of possible mild hybrid architectures with specific provision made for vehicle systems with a significant air-conditioning load to be provide by electrically driven compressors. A dual battery system will be developed with battery storage and electric motor/generators. Extensive modelling simulation and testing activities will be undertaken by Queen's University Belfast. Vehicle trials will be undertaken by Go-Ahead Group.