CHIC

Clean Hydrogen In European Cities  

The project CHIC was seen as the essential next step leading to the full market commercialisation of fuel cell buses and their hydrogen supply infrastructure.

CHIC has facilitated the integration of fuel cell buses, powered by hydrogen fuel, into daily operations in Aargau (Switzerland), Bolzano (Italy), London (United Kingdom), Milan (Italy) and Oslo (Norway). 26 latest-generation buses (hybrid systems with a fuel cell and a battery) from different manufacturers have been in service up to 2016. The refuelling station was open also for passenger vehicles form outside the project.

Integrated into CHIC were further cities (called Phase 0 Partners) that already operate hydrogen vehicles and refuelling stations (Berlin, Hamburg and Cologne from Germany and Whistler in British Columbia/Canada). They forwarded their experiences to the five new sites (Phase 1 Partners).

From 2012, a transfer of expertise took place to further regions throughout Europe (Phase 2) which were in the planning stage for related activities.

CHIC was the third in a string of projects that aimed at introducing and optimising the use of hydrogen as a fuel in public transport. Up to the end of the project, 6,800 tonnes of CO₂ equivalent have been saved. The buses travelled over 9 million kilometres and substituted more than 4,3 million litres of diesel. 

PLANET's role

PLANET has been involved in these activities since 2001, from the beginning of the CUTE project. In CHIC, we are again in charge of the infrastructure performance assessment.

PLANET also co-ordinates the scale-up of refuelling capacity as well as capturing and forwarding best practices in the infrastructure domain.

Managing Director Klaus Stolzenburg has been elected to the Steering Committee.