Austria Launches First Hydrogen Refueling Station with 35 Fuel Cell Buses in Carinthia

Land Kärnten has officially launched Austria's first hydrogen refueling station dedicated exclusively to buses, alongside a fleet deployment of 35 hydrogen fuel cell buses in the Carinthian region. The buses, operated by ÖBB Postbus, cover rural routes totaling approximately two million kilometers annually across the Drau Valley and surrounding areas.

The fuel cell buses are capable of traveling roughly 400 kilometers on a single tank and can refuel in under 15 minutes at 700-bar pressure. The fleet is expected to replace approximately 700,000 liters of diesel annually. The refueling station was developed by Gutmann GmbH in partnership with Wolftank, with technical validation and monitoring provided by HyCentA Research GmbH.

The hydrogen powering the fleet is produced by Kelag's 2 MW PEM electrolyzer located in Arnoldstein, which operates primarily on hydroelectric power supplemented by waste-to-energy sources. The facility produces up to 700 kg of hydrogen daily, totaling approximately 140 tonnes annually.

The initiative builds on a regional hydrogen strategy established around 2021 and aligns with the EU's "Hydrogen Valleys" initiative. The pilot fleet has been operational since 2022, with the official launch occurring after federal and EU funding was secured. The project involves coordination among six stakeholders: Kelag, ÖBB Postbus, Gutmann, HyCentA, and Verkehrsverbund Kärnten.

Key challenges identified include high upfront infrastructure costs, fuel cell stack expenses, and the need for expanded hydrogen production capacity to support potential fleet expansion.

Originally reported by Hydrogen Fuel News. Read the full article →