Calvera manufactures the largest bus hydrogen refuelling station in Spain. The Aragonese group Calvera is proving to be an important player in the growing commitment to hydrogen-related technologies both in Europe and in particular, and more recently, in Spain. The Zaragoza SME is now manufacturing at its facilities what will be the largest hydrogen station for buses in Spain , which will be used for public transport units in Barcelona.
Calvera manufactures the largest bus hydrogen refuelling station in Spain
Rafael Calvera, director of the Aragonese industrial group when reporting on this project:
The hydrogen station that we design and manufacture must meet the specifications required by the public company TMB (Transportes Metropolitanos de Barcelona) and the idea is that it be capable of filling 16 buses a day”
The forecast is for the hydrogen service station to be up and running at the end of this year or early next, although the schedule includes, he added, two more phases, one that estimates that 26 buses a day can be filled by 2023 and another rear that allows up to 66 units to be loaded in a day. In this case, the Zaragoza company works for Iberdrola, which is the winner of the TMB tender.
Only manufacturer in the country
“In Spain we are the only manufacturer of hydrogen refuelling stations and in Europe of the few that exist, and the positioning we are having today is possible thanks to the more than 40 years of experience we have in the world of high precision hydrogen “, said Calvera , which leads an SME with facilities in the Malpica de Zaragoza industrial estate and in Épila that employs about 64 people.
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The Calvera group is currently experiencing a moment of great interest after a year that, despite how complicated it has been due to the pandemic, in its case has brought a new positioning in its specialty by the Government of Spain.
Last October the ‘Green Hydrogen Roadmap’ was approved , which in addition to identifying the development of the value chain of the economy of this gas and technological leadership as clear opportunities and as one of the main ways to obtain the desired climate neutrality in 2050, contemplates very clear objectives for our country, which include having between 100 and 150 public access hydrogen refuelling stations and 5,000-7,000 light and heavy hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in 2030.
“Actually we are following the guidelines of Europe, but it was time that we had a plan like this, ” said Rafael Calvera with satisfaction, who wants society to be able to identify that a hydrogen station will work similar to how gas stations are doing today. “It is a technology that will help solve the decarbonisation problems that we have, and we must remember that we have an unlimited resource,” he said.
The Calvera group closed 2020 with a turnover of 10.2 million euros , 16.6% than the previous year after launching cutting-edge projects. One of them is the first car hydrogen refuelling station at 700 bars in Spain, located in Madrid, a work that was carried out in a consortium with Enagás, Toyota and Urbaser. The station is located on Avenida de Manoteras in the capital, in the north of the city.
Calvera fabrica para Barcelona la hidrogenera de autobuses más grande de España, 21 April 2021 [in Spanish]
