Five hydrogen-powered buses operated by De Lijn in Antwerp, Belgium, have been permanently retired, as the public transport company deems them neither operationally nor financially viable.
In addition to the fuel cell buses being decommissioned, De Lijn also decided to dismantle the hydrogen refuelling station located at Vaartkaai, according to local news site Nieuwsblad.
Ultimately, the collapse of bus manufacturer Van Hool was a key factor in the decision to cancel the hydrogen-powered public transport operations.
Flemish Minister of Mobility, Annick De Ridder, explained that the transport operators are now focusing on electrification.
“With the bankruptcy, technical support and maintenance options disappeared, combined with higher operational costs over their lifetime, the decision was made to dismantle the hydrogen refuelling station at Vaartkaai and retire the five hydrogen buses,” De Ridder said.
“Our electrification strategy is focused on battery-powered vehicles. There are no plans to deploy hydrogen buses. From an operational and financial perspective, hydrogen is currently not a viable option for public transport in Belgium.”
The buses were first introduced in Antwerp in 2014, but by 2018, De Lijn had decided not to expand the fleet.
Belgian manufacturer Van Hool, which boasted a hydrogen fuel cell-powered bus business line, faced financial struggles and reportedly accumulated over $400 million in debt before declaring bankruptcy in 2024.
Just this week, Polish transport operator MPK Poznan withdrew all Solaris Urbino 12 hydrogen buses from city service over system malfunctions. The bus manufacturer highlighted the poor hydrogen quality provided by Orlen as the most likely cause of the malfunction.
The news came shortly after MPK Poznan expanded its fleet order with Solaris.
