THE CAF GROUP SUBSIDIARY SOLARIS IS AWARDED CONTRACTS VALUED AT €70 MILLION

Aarhus becomes first Danish city to operate Solaris electric buses

Solaris, and the Danish airline AarBus, have signed an agreement for the supply of 29 electric buses, 6 of which will consist of the Solaris Urbino 12 model, while the remaining 23 vehicles will be 18-metre Urbino articulated units. Pursuant to the contract, these zero-emission buses are expected to be delivered to the Danish company in mid-2022.

Located on the Jutland peninsula, Aarhus is located northwest of Copenhagen, Denmark's capital city. It is Denmark's second largest city and, as a result of this agreement, will be the first city in Scandinavia to put Solaris electric buses into service.

The vehicles will be equipped with Solaris High Energy batteries. In the case of articulated vehicles, the batteries will have a total capacity of 440 kWh, whilst in the 12-metre version of the bus, power will be stored in batteries with a total capacity of more than 260 kWh. Both models can be recharged using a conventional charging power outlet in the customer's depot, as well as via the pantograph.

The first buses manufactured by Solaris reached Aarhus in 2006. Since then, Solaris has supplied almost 200 buses to this Danish city. The new vehicles mean that the city will now become one of a growing number of European customers who have decided to purchase zero- emission vehicles, which helping to improve the quality of life in cities.

The CAF Group signs a contract for the supply of up to 150 CNG buses to Tallinn in Estonia

Moreover, Solaris and the Estonian operator, Aktsiaselts Tallinna Linnatransport (TLT), have entered into a contract for the supply of 100 environmentally friendly urban buses powered using Compressed Natural Gas (CNG). The agreement includes the possibility of increasing the number of buses by an additional 50 units. 75 of the 100 vehicles in the base contract will be 12-metre Urbino vehicles, while the remaining 25 will be 18-metre articulated Urbino models, with deliveries scheduled for completion in 2022.

Both the Urbino 12 model, and the Urbino 18 articulated units, will be fitted with a 235 kW engine adapted for using Compressed natural gas (CNG). It will be designed to operate in poor weather conditions thanks to the cold start function that helps the engine to start at very low temperatures. The operator has, in terms of features, also opted for high-quality equipment, including a state-of-the-art passenger information system, USB ports for charging mobile devices, surveillance cameras for increased safety and an automatic passenger counting system.

The Estonian capital is among the most sophisticated cities in the world when it comes to the use of information technology and its commitment to modern and efficient urban public transport. Against this background, since 2002 to date, Tallinn has received more than 50 zero-emission trolleybuses manufactured by Solaris, as well as 200 Urbino CNG buses. In addition to this, 20 trams supplied by CAF are currently running in the city centre, thereby highlighting the Company's significant presence in the capital.




Solaris will also supply CNG buses to Valladolid

Finally, the operator Auvasa, a transport services provider for Valladolid, has also chosen CAF Group buses to operate in the city. The agreement covers the supply of up to 57 CNG-powered Solaris Urbino buses, with deliveries scheduled between 2021-2024. Specifically, the contract covers 35 12-metre buses and 22 articulated vehicles, making them the first Solaris buses to operate in this city in the region of Castilla y León.

The Solaris brand has been strengthening its position on the Spanish market, with an increasing number of cities becoming interested in the wide range of vehicles using alternative propulsion. Earlier this year, Madrid decided to purchase 250 CNG buses from the CAF Group, while in Barcelona, 30 hybrid vehicles will join the Urbino electric buses recently delivered in Barcelona.

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