BVG orders 30 electric buses for Berlin

Following a lengthy tender process, Berlin transport provider BVG has made its decision. The board approved the acquisition of 30 electric buses that are to arrive next year. Details on the manufacturer have not been disclosed but Daimler is a good guess although Solaris may be an option too.

When the tender to procure electric buses to serve in the German capital was first released, it hit a few hurdles along the way.  Initially there were not enough participants, so BVG then extended the bidding period and apparently have found a suitable bidder.

Whilst there had been talk of turning to suppliers from Asia as the BVG went on an “info trip” there, it now looks as if Mercedes will deliver the electric buses. They have yet to confirm this but BVG placed a large order for the regular Citaro – a model Daimler is about to offer as electric variant from September as well (we reported).

Another contender could be Solaris. BVG has been running a trial with four electric buses from the Polish maker since 2015 (we reported). Moreover, the BVG formed a buying community with Hamburg Hochbahn to increase their bargaining power with larger order volumes (we reported). Hamburg Hochbahn recently opted to procure electric buses from both Daimler and Solaris.

morgenpost.de (in German)