- Equivalent to driving 250x around the Earth!
VANCOUVER, Jan. 3, 2017 /CNW/ - Ballard Power Systems
(NASDAQ: BLDP; TSX: BLDP) today announced that it is the first fuel
cell company to power buses for more than 10 million cumulative
kilometers (6.2 million miles) of revenue service, equivalent to
circling the Earth 250 times at the equator.
This fuel cell industry milestone has been achieved across the
company's seven generations of its FCveloCity® fuel cell
engine, which have been deployed in buses in 15 countries on 5
continents during the past 10 years. Over this period Ballard has worked with 13 bus manufacturers
to develop a variety of fuel cell bus configurations that have been
deployed in a wide range of climatic conditions and operated under
a host of demanding duty cycles.
Today Ballard FCveloCity® engines are powering more
than 80 buses around the globe: 41 in Europe, including Belgium, Germany, Italy, the
Netherlands, Norway,
Scotland and the U.K.; 24 in the
Cities of Foshan and Yunfu, China;
13 in the U.S.A., including the
states of California, Massachusetts, Michigan and Ohio; 3 in Brazil; and 1 in India.
Ballard is seeing increased
market demand for FCveloCity® fuel cell engines of
various sizes for use in a number of different vehicle types,
including:
- Ongoing shipments to fulfill additional requirements of partner
Guangdong Synergy Hydrogen Power Technology Co., Ltd. for more than
300 buses in Foshan and Yunfu, China;
- Fuel cell orders from strategic partner Zhongshan Broad-Ocean
Motor Co., Ltd. to power 10,000 commercial vehicles that will be
deployed in its China vehicle
leasing business, thereby creating significant demand pull-through
for Ballard technology;
- Ballard's ongoing development
programs for 200 kilowatt (kW) engines to power urban light rail
vehicles for China's CRRC
Corporation Ltd., the world's largest train manufacturer;
- A recent purchase order from OEM Solaris Bus & Coach for
engines to power buses for deployment in Riga, Latvia;
- Bidding for more than 100 fuel cell buses under Europe's Horizon 2020 funded program;
and
- Bidding on fuel cell bus programs funded by the U.S. Federal
Transit Administration (FTA) under the Low and No Emission (LoNo)
Vehicle Deployment Program.
"The achievement of 10 million cumulative kilometers of revenue
service is a major industry and corporate milestone," said
Randy MacEwen, Ballard's President CEO. "We are moving beyond
technical validation into commercial scaling at a time where market
demand is at a breakthrough inflection point. The cumulative
learning by Ballard during our
unparalleled field experience serves as a major competitive
differentiator."
Dr. Kevin Colbow, Ballard's Vice President – Technology and
Product Development added, "We are extremely pleased with the
evolution of our fuel cell engine development work and with the
widespread implementation of demonstration programs around the
globe over the past 10 years. Ballard has reduced fuel cell engine product
cost by 75% over this period and we have improved engine
reliability, durability and performance of our plug-and-play
solutions to a highly competitive level. We are strongly positioned
for rapid growth in scaled commercial revenue service deployments
now underway and planned in China,
Europe and the United States."
In the past year FCveloCity®-MD 30kW and
FCveloCity®-HD 60kW product extensions have been added
to Ballard's
FCveloCity®-HD 85kW product in order to broaden the
addressable range of motive applications, from smaller commercial
vehicles and 8 meter (24 foot) buses up to large articulated buses.
In addition, the FCveloCity®-XD 200kW product will be
capable of powering light rail systems.
Fuel cell buses manufactured and integrated by Ballard's leading partners and equipped with
Ballard engines typically offer a
host of important attributes, including:
- 350 kilometer (220 mile) range between refuelings;
- Rapid refueling in as little as 7 minutes;
- Improved fuel economy compared to diesel buses (1.5x) and CNG
buses (more than 2x);
- Operating performance comparable to diesel and CNG buses;
- Comparable durability, with several fuel cell buses having
passed the 20,000 operating hour threshold;
- Route flexibility, with no need for en-route recharging, such
as overhead catenary wiring; and
- Reduced noise and smoother ride for improved passenger riding
experience.
Ballard thanks all its
partners, transit agencies, bus operators, bus manufacturers and
service providers worldwide that have enabled achievement of the 10
million kilometer revenue service milestone.
About Ballard Power Systems
Ballard Power Systems
(NASDAQ: BLDP; TSX: BLDP) provides clean energy products that
reduce customer costs and risks, and helps customers solve
difficult technical and business challenges in their fuel cell
programs. To learn more about Ballard, please visit www.ballard.com.
This release contains forward-looking statements concerning
anticipated product performance, customer benefits and market
demand for our products. These forward-looking statements reflect
Ballard's current expectations as
contemplated under section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as
amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as
amended. Any such forward-looking statements are based on
Ballard's assumptions relating to
its financial forecasts and expectations regarding its product
development efforts, manufacturing capacity, and market demand.
These statements involve risks and uncertainties that may cause
Ballard's actual results to be
materially different, including general economic and regulatory
changes, detrimental reliance on third parties, successfully
achieving our business plans and achieving and sustaining
profitability. For a detailed discussion of these and other risk
factors that could affect Ballard's future performance, please refer to
Ballard's most recent Annual
Information Form. Readers should not place undue reliance on
Ballard's forward-looking
statements and Ballard assumes no
obligation to update or release any revisions to these forward
looking statements, other than as required under applicable
legislation.
This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or the
solicitation of an offer to buy securities. The Ballard
Common Shares have not been registered under the United States
Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the securities laws of any
other jurisdiction and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an
applicable exemption from registration requirements.
SOURCE Ballard Power Systems Inc.