HOT SUMMER FOR SOLARIS AS NEW ORDERS POUR IN FROM GERMANY

The summer brought a lot of hot activity on the German market for Solaris. New orders kept pouring in from German operators, with municipal operators from Düsseldorf and Hanover joining the already impressive group of Solaris

customers on the German market. The Solaris order book has also been boosted with repeat orders from the existing customers, including the cities of Kassel, Dresden and Koblenz, satisfied with the performance of the Solaris vehicles in their respective fleets. These new orders have enabled Solaris to strengthen its prominent position as the leading bus and coach exporter to Germany. With these latest orders included, Solaris buses will be present in a total of 34 German cities and towns.

This means that the coming autumn will also be extremely busy for Solaris with deliveries scheduled to the German customers. The delivery schedule for the rest of 2005 also includes a batch of Solaris Urbino 18 articulated buses contracted as a part of the huge 260-vehicle order for the Berlin City Transport Company (Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe - BVG). More Solaris Urbino city buses are scheduled to leave the assembly line for the cities of Düsseldorf (order for 21 Solaris Urbino 12 buses for Rheinbahn), Bremen (1 Solaris Urbino 18 unit for BSAG), Weiden (2 Solaris Urbino 12s for Wies Faszinatour), Borsinghausen (2 Solaris Urbino 12s and one Solaris Urbino 18 artic for Dau Bus GmbH), Hanover (1 Solaris Urbino 12 for ÜSTRA), Rosenheim (2 Solaris Urbino 12s for Kroiss Stadtverkehr), Koblenz (3 Solaris Urbino 12s for KEVAG), Dresden (7 Solaris Urbino 12s for DVB), Meißen (3 Solaris Urbino 12s for Verkehrsbetriebe Meißen), Kassel (20 Solaris Urbino 12s for KVG), Kastorf (3 Solaris Urbino 12s for Dahmetal AG) and Bayreuth (a single Solaris Urbino for HABO REISEN). In total this gives a respectable total of 56 units.

The largest orders are the contracts signed with Rheinische Bahngesellschaft AG and Kasseler Verkehrs- und Versorgungs-GmbH. Out of the 56 vehicles on order, a batch of 21 Solaris Urbino 12s will be delivered to Düsseldorf. Another 20 units will go to Kassel where two Solaris Urbino 18 articulated buses have been in operation since 2004. Kassel also placed a much bigger order for Solaris Urbino 12 buses in June 2005, with an option to purchase further 10 units. The single Solaris Urbino 12 to be delivered to ÜSTRA Hannoversche Verkehrsbetriebe AG this year is the first vehicle from a batch of 25 units on order by this operator. The remaining buses are scheduled to be delivered in 2006 - 2008.

A large number of repeat orders from existing Solaris Bus & Coach customers confirm the high quality of the Solaris products and the high esteem in which they are held by operators. The European product standards and the excellent rapport with customers help to build mutual trust and constitute the manufacturer‘s best asset for the future. The multiple benefits to be drawn from the co-operation with the Bolechowo-based bus builder have already been appreciated by such municipalities as Berlin, Koblenz, Munich, Dresden, Kassel, Kastorf, Bayreuth, Weiden, Meißen or Rosenheim, the fact that has now been confirmed with a number of repeat orders. This growing base of established customers is the best shop-window for Solars products in Germany, and helps the company to consolidate its strong position of the biggest bus exporter to Germany.

"We are extremely proud of the strong position our buses have won on the German market. Each new order that we have won is a conformation and a proof that we have adopted the correct strategy, and that we are moving in the right direction. This demand for the Solaris buses in Germany is one of the reasons why we have embarked upon the task of building a brand new manufacturing facility. It is a significant outlay for the company, but we are spending this money with pleasure," joked Krzysztof Olszewski, Solaris Bus & Coach S.A. Chairman and Chief Executive.