The Fact Maker

Tata Motors bags order of 15 hydrogen-based fuel cell buses from Indian Oil Corporation Ltd

Bengaluru: Reaffirming its commitment towards sustainable mobility, Tata Motors, India’s largest commercial vehicle player and leading bus manufacturer, announced that it has won a tender of 15 hydrogen-based proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell buses from the Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL). IOCL had invited bids for supply of PEM fuel cell buses in December 2020, and Tata Motors was selected as the winner following a diligent evaluation process. All 15 buses will be delivered within 144 weeks from the date of signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU).

In addition to supplying the buses to the Research & Development Centre of IOCL, Tata Motors will also collaborate with them to undertake R&D projects and collectively study further the potential of Fuel Cell technology for commercial vehicles. This will be done by jointly testing, maintaining and operating these buses for public transport in real-world conditions in Delhi-NCR. The buses will be refuelled by hydrogen, generated and dispensed by IOCL.

Sh. S.M.Vaidya, Chairman, IndianOil, stated that IndianOil has been pioneering the national efforts towards ushering in the hydrogen economy for various applications, including mobility. This 1st of its kind project in the country is bringing the country’s largest fuel supplier and largest commercial vehicle manufacturer on board to take the hydrogen & fuel cell technology to the next level. This initiative would also act as a stepping stone for various other key programs of IndianOil, which proposes to introduce hydrogen-based mobility on different iconic routes and important sectors in the country. These futuristic steps are in the right direction for making hydrogen as the ultimate net-zero fuel.