Scania testing unique hybrid buses in Stockholm

Scania testing unique hybrid buses in Stockholm

To further improve the environment in the Swedish capital, Scania is now
starting full-scale operational trials with six ethanol-fuelled hybrid buses.
The hybrid technology will reduce fuel consumption by 25 percent. The use of
ethanol will reduce net carbon dioxide emissions by up to 90 percent. The trials
will be run in cooperation with Stockholm Public Transport (SL), and the
operator Swebus.


During the two-year trial period, the buses will serve one of the more demanding
and heavily used lines in Stockholm.

“These operational trials will give us valuable experience of how hybrid
technology shapes up in real life, as well as of its environmental effects,”
says Göran Hammarberg, Head of Bus Development at Scania.

The trials are also supported by the Swedish Energy Agency and the Swedish
Environmental Protection Agency.

In the new Scania OmniLink low-entry buses, Scania combines better fuel economy
with the use of renewable fuel. The hybrid technology is expected to save at
least 25 percent on fuel, and the fact that the diesel engines run on ethanol
will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by up to 90 percent compared to a
conventional diesel bus.

“Long-term, hybrid technology will help us reach even more ambitious
environmental objectives for urban traffic,” says Göran Hammarberg.

Scania has chosen a series hybrid solution for these buses, a technology with
the greatest benefits in stop-and-go city driving. What characterises a series
hybrid powertrain is that there is no mechanical connection between the
combustion engine and the propulsion motor.

Electrical power is generated by a diesel engine adapted to run on ethanol.
Mechanical energy is converted to electrical energy in a generator.

The six buses are driven by an electrical motor that doubles as a generator when
braking. Energy is stored in supercapacitors with considerably longer service
life than today's batteries.

Since the start in 1989, Scania has supplied some 400 ethanol city buses to SL
and this has strongly contributed to an improved environment in central
Stockholm.

Scania regards ethanol as the most attractive renewable fuel available for city
traffic today, taking into account factors like availability, infrastructure and
proven technology.

* * * 

One of the Scania OmniLink ethanol-hybrid buses will be on display at the UITP
World Congress and Mobility & City Transport Exhibition in Vienna in June 2009.


For further information, please contact: Gunnar Boman, Corporate Relations, 
tel +46 8 553 895 10.

Scania is one of the world's leading manufacturers of trucks and buses for heavy
transport applications, and of industrial and marine engines. A growing
proportion of the company's operations consists of products and services in the
financial and service sectors, assuring Scania customers of cost-effective
transport solutions and maximum uptime. Employing 35,000 people, Scania operates
in about 100 countries. Research and development activities are concentrated in
Sweden, while production takes place in Europe and South America, with
facilities for global interchange of both components and complete vehicles. In
2008, invoiced sales totalled SEK 89 billion and net income amounted to SEK 8.9
billion. 


Scania press releases are available at www.scania.com