Romania hosts the third hydrogen bus roadshow this spring as part of the JIVE projects supported and funded by the Clean Hydrogen Partnership, followed by Greece, Bosnia Herzegovina, and Bulgaria. A hydrogen fuel cell bus will be made available at the beginning of May 2024 for testing and demonstration purposes in nine European cities, including Cluj-Napoca and Galati.
Following the positive results of the first two JIVE projects CEE (Central Eastern Europe) roadshows – one organized between November 2022 and January 2023 with the bus traveling a total distance of 1,641 km across 5 countries (Slovenia, Croatia, Czechia, Slovakia and Hungary) and a second one from September to mid-October 2023 across 4 countries (Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia) with the bus traveling a total distance of 1,450 km – this third roadshow aims to provide the opportunity to showcase in Romania the technology based on hydrogen and to allow cities to experience and test it.
The previous initiatives had an important impact on local demand, with nearly all participating cities announcing a formal interest in deploying hydrogen fuel cell buses after the roadshow. It also contributed to a higher understanding of the technology and its benefits to a large audience.
“I am proud to see that with its 3rd Road Show in Romania, Greece, Bulgaria and Bosnia and Herzegovina, our project JIVE is continuing to show-case the hydrogen buses and refuelling stations to the interested local authorities in South-Eastern Europe”, Mirela Atanasiu, Executive Director ad interim of Clean Hydrogen Partnership, said. “Through the funding provided by the Clean Hydrogen Partnership, and the additional strategic collaboration with regional authorities and industrial partners, JIVE is a successful example of how we can position the EU as a front-runner to become carbon-neutral by 2050.”
“The involvement of Romania and, especially, of the two cities – Cluj-Napoca and Galati – in the 2024 Roadshow is not arbitrary: both municipalities have shown their openness to green technology and have publicly expressed their desire to expand the fleet of buses with hydrogen vehicles, for a cleaner environment”, say Cristina Păun and Andreea Gheorghe, national coordinators of the project. “We are proud to support this initiative as part of our desire to help bring clean energy solutions of the future to the reality of today.”
Dedicated events will take place in Cluj-Napoca on May 9, 2024, and in Galați on May 13, 2024, aiming to address the different barriers to hydrogen powered buses in the country and attempt to find solutions. It will host representatives from the Clean Hydrogen Partnership, Hydrogen Europe and ERM together with Romanian central and local authorities’ representatives, experts, and energy associations.
About JIVE 1 and JIVE 2
The JIVE and JIVE2 projects are financed by the Clean Hydrogen Joint Undertaking under grant agreements no. 735582 and 779563. The Clean Hydrogen Undertaking receives support from the European Union’s research and innovation programs Horizon 2020, Hydrogen Europe, and Hydrogen Europe Research.
The JIVE and JIVE2 projects, which started in January 2017 and January 2018, respectively, will deploy approx. 300 zero-emission fuel cell buses and associated infrastructure (under the MEHRLIN project) in 16 European cities and regions by the first half of the 2020s, which represents the largest implementation in Europe so far. The buses will be deployed in cities and regions in France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, and the United Kingdom.
Find out more about the project activities on the project website (fuelcellbuses.eu), also on Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram pages.
About the Clean Hydrogen Partnership
The Clean Hydrogen Partnership is supporting research and innovation (R&I) activities in hydrogen technologies in Europe. It aims to accelerate the development of advanced clean hydrogen applications ready for market, across end-use sectors such as energy, transport, building and industry, while strengthening the competitiveness of the clean hydrogen value chain. The members of the partnership are the European Commission, fuel cell and hydrogen industries represented by Hydrogen Europe and the research community represented by Hydrogen Europe Research.
About ERM
As the largest global pure play sustainability consultancy, ERM partners with the world’s leading organizations, creating innovative solutions to sustainability challenges, and unlocking commercial opportunities that meet the needs of today while preserving opportunity for future generations. ERM’s diverse team of 8,000+ world-class experts in over 150 offices in 40 countries and territories combine strategic transformation and technical delivery to help clients operationalize sustainability at pace and scale. ERM calls this capability its “boots to boardroom” approach – a comprehensive service model that helps organizations to accelerate the integration of sustainability into their strategy and operations.
ERM is the project coordinator of the JIVE and JIVE 2 projects.
About Energy42
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