BYD looking to start European assembly of electric bus

Chinese manufacturer BYD says it is planning a European bus assembly facility following positive trials of its electric ebus single-decker and orders nearing 100.

No decision has yet been made on the location of the facility, but BYD said a number of countries were being considered where access to market and local skills would be attractive.

The UK is very well placed in this regard considering it has proven experience in delivering electric bus and battery technology. Optare builds its fully electric bus in the UK while Nissan has also made Sunderland a world centre for battery production.

General conditions for manufacturing in the UK are attractive, too, and much work is being done at a central government level and down to continue attracting inward investment.

The ebus has so far been trialled in Paris, Bremen, Bonn, Madrid, Barcelona, Salzburg, Warsaw, Amsterdam, Brussels and Budapest, while tests will soon start in London. The Dutch island of Schiermonnikoog has converted its entire bus fleet to pure electric BYD ebuses and a fleet of 35 units has been ordered for Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport.