Turkey / Portugal – Bus and coach manufacturer, CaetanoBus SA of Vila Nova de Gaia, Portugal, has partnered with fellow bus and coach builder, Temsa SA of Adana, Turkey, to jointly develop an electric hydrogen coach in 2024. Both companies are referring to this as an “R&D collaboration.” Both firms see a gap in the market for long-distance luxury travel coaches, where hydrogen technology can outperform current battery-electric technology. The focus will be on vehicle build quality and vehicle range. Production is to take place at Temsa’s factory in Adana, with a prototype expected by next year and series production towards the end of 2025. The companies said both engineering teams would be working closely together in order to meet these deadlines.

Designed for long-distance coach travel, the H2 coach will integrate a new generation Toyota (Toyota Motor Corporation) fuel cell stack* (used in Caetano’s city buses) into the Temsa HD platform. The electric hydrogen is to operate with hydrogen refuelled at 350 or 700 bars (H2 Dual System) offering operational flexibility, whilst a single refilling is expected to offer up to 1000 km. The first coach to be launched is to be a 2-axle based on the electric version of the Temsa HD12 coach with a 3-axle variant to be developed thereafter.