Solaris sums up 2016. New Solaris Urbino electric named Bus of the Year 2017!

The past year was very successful for Solaris, which sold a total of 1300 vehicles to Polish and foreign clients. This means an increase in the number of buses and trolleybuses sold as compared to 2015 (1279 vehicles). At the same time, Solaris reported record revenues, totalling 409 M euro in 2016.

Diagram: Number of Solaris vehicles sold from 2006 to 2016

In Poland, Solaris has maintained its leading position in the segment of low-floor city buses for the 14th year running. Out of the total number of 1,300 vehicles sold, as many as 471 went to domestic clients. Such result in the low-floor city buses provided the Company with an impressive 66% market share. The closest competitor reached an 18% market share.

Diagram: Polish market of low-floor city buses, GVW>8 tonnes, by percentage

Major Solaris clients in Poland in 2016 included such municipal operators as MPK Krakow (77 vehicles, including 5 electric buses and 12 hybrid buses), Mobilis Warszawa (54 Urbino 8.9 LE buses), and Arriva Warszawa (54 Urbino 12 buses, including four hybrid buses).

The year 2016 was very successful for the Polish manufacturer also on foreign markets. In total, Solaris exported 829 vehicles, most of which were supplied to German bus companies (276 vehicles). Other countries with the highest number of buses supplied by Solaris included Israel and Italy. Good sales achieved in Italy were mainly the result of deliveries under the contract for 300 Solaris InterUrbino intercity buses for a transport operator Cotral. This contract, won last year, was the second largest contract in the Company’s history in terms of the number of vehicles (following the contract for 320 buses for Athens in 2009).

Diagram: Number of Solaris vehicles sold in 2016, by country

Solaris: the e-mobility leader

2016 was a breakthrough year for Solaris also on the electric bus market. In September, during the IAA trade fair in Hanover, the prize in the “Bus of The Year” contest was officially awarded to the new Solaris Urbino 12 electric. For the first time, this prestigious award went to a Polish company, and for the first time it was granted for an electric bus, which clearly shows that e-mobility will be the prevailing trend in the public transport sector in the coming years.

This trend can also be seen in the commercial aspect of the Company’s business. In October, Solaris won two major contracts for delivery of electric buses on the Polish market. One involved delivery of 22 battery buses for PKM in Jaworzno, the other – 20 Urbino electric buses for MPK in Cracow. Orders for electric buses have also been placed by Finland and Norway.

The number of electric buses supplied and manufactured by Solaris grows dynamically and already totals over 100 vehicles. Electric, very quiet and zero-emission Urbino electric buses are or will soon be seen on the roads in: Austria, Czech Republic, Finland, Spain, Germany, Poland and Sweden.

“E-mobility has been a major element of Solaris’s strategy for many years now. We have manufactured trolleybuses since 2001; in 2006, as the first European manufacturer, we presented a serially manufactured bus with a hybrid drive system, and we have had battery-driven buses on offer since 2011. Nowadays, we can confidently state we are the leader in this area not just in Poland, but across Europe, as testified to by the Bus of the Year 2017 title and the number of completed and pending deliveries of electric buses. In my opinion, the coming 2-3 years will be crucial for our Company as regards the future of this segment, and electric vehicles will become a pillar of our production,” says Zbigniew Palenica, Solaris Board Member in charge of sales, marketing, and aftersales.

New Products

In 2015, Solaris started serial production of new generation buses. The new model gradually replaces the previous design. In the past year, the portfolio of the latest generation vehicles was enriched by three added types: new Solaris Urbino 12 CNG (compressed natural gas), new Solaris Urbino 12 Hybrid with diesel-electric drive, and a MIDI class bus – the new Solaris Urbino 10.5.

For this year, the Company has planned the premiere of the new articulated Solaris Urbino 18 in the electric version and the premiere of the new Solaris Trollino. Moreover, the product range will be extended by a trolleybus with a battery and a hydrogen fuel cell. Ten vehicles of this type have been ordered by a transport company in Riga (Latvia).

Trams

2016 saw major changes in the Solaris tram division. In December, the Company announced that, starting from 1 January 2017, Solaris and Stadler establish a joint venture named Solaris Tram Sp. z o.o. to run a joint plant in Sroda Wielkopolska, where trams will be manufactured. Solaris Tram and Stadler Polska will present joint bids in tenders on Polish and European markets as a consortium, with Stadler as the consortium leader. This means that the market position of both companies in the rail vehicles sector will be strengthened.

Summary of 2016 and plans for 2017

“This was a very good year for our Company, with record revenues, and the third result in history in the number of vehicles sold. Worthy of attention is the dynamic growth in the sales and number of orders in the electric buses area. I think that we are well prepared for the “electric change” that is taking place on the public transport market in Poland and in Europe. We are also very proud of receiving the ’Bus of the Year 2017’ award for our electric bus. This is an international proof of praise for technological advancement of our battery-driven vehicles.

This year has started very positively for us, as we have won several major contracts, including an order for 208 hybrid buses in Belgium to start with. Our production plans, therefore, look very optimistic.

Certainly, we cannot simply sit down and relax, contemplating our success, as the situation on the European bus market is very dynamic. So we work continuously on improving our efficiency and return ratios,” says Solange Olszewska, President of the Board and Owner of Solaris Bus & Coach S.A.