from the Department of the Environment and Heritage and the Australian Greenhouse Office. It was endorsed by the United Nations Environment Programme and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization. BP produced the hydrogen as a by-product at its Kwinana oil refinery ( south of Perth). The hydrogen was then transported by road in specially designed road tankers to a bus depot in the northern suburbs of Perth. Perth's buses achieved greater reliability and better fuel economy than in any other city in the trial. By June 2005, the Perth buses had covered more than and completed almost 3,000 operational hours, with almost 60,000 passengers having used the service. In 2004, STEP received a Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport Outstanding Achievement award. In 2005, it was presented with a Banksia award in the "Government Leading by Example for a Sustainable Future" category. China In 2005, Beijing purchased three hydrogen fuel cell buses from the consortium using United Nations Development Programme grants. These buses entered service as the first fuel cell buses in China, in June 2006. Scientists and researchers hoped to demonstrate how emission free transport could be achieved in China. At the time, fossil fuels such as coal and oil made up 90 per cent of China's total energy use. However, the buses were withdrawn after one year, as air pollution reduced the efficiency and operating life of the fuel cells. Vehicles and partners All projects used Mercedes-Benz Citaro buses from DaimlerChrysler. They used hydrogen fuel cells were manufactured by XCELLSIS Fuel Cell Engines, now a division of Ballard Power Systems, and were developed as an alliance of Ballard, DaimlerChrysler, and Ford. In many cities, hydrogen fuel was provided by BP. At the time, they claimed to be the largest fleet of fuel cell buses in the world with 33 in regular service. The buses were estimated to cost US$1.2 million each and had a range of and carried around 70 passengers. References External links Official website of the Fuel Cell Bus Club (also the official website of CUTE) (archived from the original) Official website of Icelandic New Energy (includes details of ECTOS) Official EcoBus website (archived from the original) Technical Information of Hydrogen Buses Green vehicles Fuel cell buses