‘Hydrogen buses operating according to schedule’
THE hydrogen buses have been operating as planned and serviced in a timely manner in accordance with the operation and maintenance schedule, said Sarawak Transport Minister Dato Sri Lee Kim Shin.
Based on the operational record by Sarawak Metro from January to October this year, he said the only major inspection and maintenance by the engineering team from Feichi, China was carried out in August for 13 days based on their contractual obligation.
Out of the 300 days this year (from January to October), the hydrogen buses were put for inspection and maintenance by local technicians for only 16 days, he added.
“The technicians from the bus manufacturer were contractually obligated to fly to Kuching but due to strict travel restrictions imposed in China due to the Covid-19 pandemic, they were only able to get to Kuching in August this year.
“Based on the data shown to me by the senior technician from China Forshan Feichi Automobile Manufacture Company, the hydrogen buses were assessed in the August 2022 maintenance period and reported to be performing well. I quote an extract from the report dated Aug 25: ‘From our overall observation, we are impressed with the performance of the hydrogen buses. The local technicians had done an admirable job in maintaining the vehicles over the past two years in ensuring the buses were safe and roadworthy’.
“The local technicians were able to perform the maintenance and servicing works with our guidance through regular communication using digital platforms, even until today. We continue to provide the required support to maintain the buses and we are happy to see that the local technicians had done a good job in taking care of the buses as all the three buses are in very good condition’,” he further quoted the report.
Lee also said the local technical team had also gained valuable experience through working together with the engineering team from the manufacturer, especially during the major inspection and maintenance period when the engineers from Foshan Feichi came to Kuching for three weeks.
“All these information was briefed to us in August this year by the China counterpart. In short, the hydrogen bus trial operation has provided valuable insight into the workings of operating fleets of heavy hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs), especially for public transport,” he said.
Although the technicians from China were not able to be in Kuching physically to conduct the maintenance and servicing for the past two years, he assured that the Sarawak Metro’s team of local technicians under Feichi’s continuous guidance through digital platforms were able to communicate on a weekly basis to carry out daily checking and maintenance.
Therefore, he said, there should be no doubt that the state has capable technicians who specialise in hydrogen technology to carry out major maintenance works.