During a meeting of its permanent commission, last Friday, the Occitanie Region agreed upon some measures to be implemented in order to stimulate the economy. One of them concerned retrofitting. The Occitanie Region has committed itself with Safra, a French manufacturer based in Albi, to an experimentation aiming at transforming diesel-powered coaches into electrically powered coaches, thanks to a hydrogen fuel cell.
The Region will purchase 15 regular-service second-hand coaches for the routes operated by its internal operator, the SPL(*) “D’un point à l’autre”, for an estimated cost of €480,000 (about $560.000).
Safra will be in charge of converting these vehicles and maintaining the hydrogen drive train for a period of 7 years. To that end, the Occitanie Regional Council has granted an additional credit of €2,887,500 (about $3.400.000).
The Occitanie Region wishes to remind that it is a historical partner of Safra, supporting the regional company in its development.
(* SPL: Société Publique Locale)
Article written by Laurent Meillaud and translated by Logan King.
