Last month, the Scottish Government announced its latest investment package to encourage the uptake in new electric buses and coaches, as well as associated charging infrastructure.
The £41.7 million grant funding package from its Scottish Zero Emission Bus Challenge Fund (ScotZEB 2), will deliver 252 new zero-emission buses and coaches, operated by a consortium including D&E Coaches, Ember, Hairy Haggis, Maynes Coaches, McGills, NHS GGC, Premier Coaches and Stagecoach.
Zenobē Energy will administer the grant funding among the consortium members to help them transition their fleets to zero-emission vehicles, install new charging infrastructure, provide ongoing support for electric vehicle operation, as well as tailored financing structures to reduce both upfront and lifetime costs of electric fleets.
The charging infrastructure will also be open to third party fleet operators, creating a Scotland-wide accessible rapid-charging network for use by all buses, coaches and HGVs, significantly enhancing electrified transport connectivity across the nation.
First Minister John Swinney said supporting zero-carbon buses as a sustainable means of public transport across Scotland will connect communities and open up new economic and social opportunities.
He added: “This investment will deliver 100 new inter-city bus routes and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by more than 600,000 tonnes over the lifetime of the fleet by encouraging more people to swap the car for efficient public transport, which is crucial to reaching net zero by 2045.
“Every £1 from the Scottish Government will leverage £3.20 of private sector investment – demonstrating that our shared decarbonisation goals can be met by working together when it comes to removing carbon emissions from our bus and coach fleets.”
ScotZEB2 is the first grant funding scheme in the UK to support zero-emission coaches for use cases other than scheduled services.
Guidance notes for the programme made clear that those vehicles bought for tourism-related work, private hire and other fields were eligible.
The grant-subsidised electrification projects will add to the 110 vehicles that Zenobē already supports in Scotland – 1,200 globally – and will be delivered alongside the company’s £750m commitment to battery energy storage systems in the region.
Steven Meersman, Founder and Director, Zenobē said: “The consortium brings together family-owned coach companies, well established bus operators, an innovative electric bus start-up and the NHS, showing how private capital can help public funding go the extra mile.
“Through our ScotZEB subsidised and Zenobē financed projects, we will support a variety of operators across Scotland to make the switch from diesel to electric.
“Zenobē uses unique financing solutions and operational support to demonstrate how we can accelerate the decarbonisation of transport across the nation, together.”
Once in operation, it is expected that the new vehicles will collectively avoid 605,595 tonnes of CO2 emissions over their 15-year lifetime, bringing cleaner air to Scottish communities.
Also, the investment will expand the current number of e-buses in the nation by 40% by the end of 2026.
The investment completes the second and final round of subsidy from ScotZEB 2, and builds on £113 million the Scottish Government has already invested in zero emission buses and supporting infrastructure.
Sam Greer, Chief Operating Officer at Stagecoach, which will get 78 vehicles and infrastructure at five locations, as part of the award said: “We are excited to be working with Zenobē in this innovative partnership to speed up transport decarbonisation and deliver our shared climate ambitions.
“Only by leveraging each other’s strengths will we be able to achieve our challenging net zero targets and build a world-class decarbonised supply chain.
“We are grateful for the support of the Scottish Government and look forward to working with our partners to bring new greener, cleaner vehicles to towns and cities across Scotland.”
This new funding will also help Edinburgh-based Ember roll out 100 electric coaches throughout Scotland by 2026 as well as EV infrastructure at five sites.
The company said its new vehicles will operate from a network of ultra-fast charging hubs with 600kW chargers capable of fully-charging its coach in under an hour.
Of the other coach operators, Maynes will get 12 vehicles; D&E five; Premier four; and Hairy Haggis two.
With regards to other consortium members, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde is to gain five, while the funding that is in the process of reallocation will be for at least four.
McGill’s Bus Group, which has already saved 11,270 tonnes of carbon thanks to its investment so far of £55 million in electric buses, will order 42 further vehicles under the new funding and develop charging infrastructure at three sites.
Alex Hornby, Group Managing Director, McGill’s Bus Group said: “Across Scotland, thanks to the welcome news of this latest funding round, we will soon run around 160 electric buses and 70% of our depots will benefit from complementary infrastructure.
“Alongside Inverclyde and Renfrewshire which now largely boast a frontline, electric bus fleet, locations like Falkirk and Stirling will now be able to experience the benefits.
“Our flourishing bus network in Dundee, already fully LEZ compliant, will also see nearly half of its frontline fleet become zero emission.”
In addition, consultancy BluMarbl was part of the winning consortium, having performed in-depth assessment and analysis of the work and depots of each participating operator.
No information about the vehicles that form part of ScotZEB2 have yet been revealed but it is likely that consortium members have already placed some orders.
In total, infrastructure part-funded by ScotZEB2 will be installed at a minimum of 23 sites in Scotland.
Chris Ashley, Policy lead for the Road Haulage Association said: “The announcement of additional investment via ScotZEB 2 in the charging network for buses, coaches and HGVs marks another significant step forward as the commercial vehicle sector seeks to reduce its carbon emissions.
“Moving away from fossil fuels requires a change of mindset on how everyone operates.”
Schemes such as ScotZEB 2 provide a welcome boost to the bus and coach sectors as operators look to decarbonise their fleets through investment in zero-emission vehicles and associated charging infrastructure.
