Colombia unveils first green hydrogen-powered bus based on experience assembling Chinese vehicles

BOGOTA, March 27 (Xinhua) -- Colombia unveiled its first low-emission hydrogen-powered bus on Monday, which is set to join the public transportation fleet here.

With a capacity of 50 passengers, the vehicle is fueled by a hydrogen-and-water mix through a 165-kilowatt electrolyzer that can produce 65 kg of green hydrogen daily, enough to supply up to 14 similar buses.

"This will not be the only bus that runs through the streets of the country's cities powered by hydrogen. We are already working, so other public service vehicles will use this clean energy," Colombia's Mines and Energy Minister Irene Velez said during the unveiling ceremony in Bogota.

Joaquin Losada, executive president of auto parts manufacturer Fanalca, which was in charge of development and assembly, said the construction of the bus is based on the experience of assembling Chinese electric buses that joined Bogota's public transit fleet in 2019.

"Based on that experience, we decided to develop the first electric bus developed and assembled in Colombia," Losada told Xinhua after the ceremony.

"Along the way, we learned about hydrogen technology, and we wondered why not also develop the first bus with this technology developed with Colombian engineering," he said.