BYD: Order from Bogotá increased – a total of 1,472 e-buses

According to previous reports from Bogotá, the Colombian capital was to receive an additional 876 e-buses from BYD, in addition to the already ordered and partially received 470. Now, the second order has been increased to 1,002 units, bringing the total number of electric buses from the Chinese manufacturer to 1,472 for the South American metropolis. This represents BYD's largest sale of electric buses outside of China.

Victory over Combustion Technology

The public transportation authority of Bogotá, Transmilenio S.A., initiated a public tender in August for diesel, CNG, and electric buses, totaling 1,295 units. BYD, together with its local partners, bodybuilders Superpolo and Busscar, won the majority of the tender and will supply the aforementioned 1,002 units. This batch is to be delivered in 2021 and the first half of 2022 and will be put into operation across 34 bus routes in five districts of the capital. Noteworthy is that the electromobility offering has prevailed over established combustion technology. According to Transmilenio, during the 15-year concession period, the e-buses will save 83,433 tons of CO₂ and 9.63 tons of particulate emissions per year compared to Euro-5 diesel equivalents.

Orders also from Medellin and Cali

Besides Bogotá, BYD buses operate in Colombian cities such as Medellin and Cali. Currently, BYD has amassed 1,550 orders for electric buses in Colombia.

This order of more than 1,000 buses marks a new start that will effectively promote the rapid development of eco-friendly transport in Latin America and the forthcoming era of global bus electrification. (BYD Motors Chief Stella Li)

BYD, active in the Colombian market since 2012, delivered the first electric taxi fleet in Latin America to Bogotá in 2013. The Chinese company now holds a market share of over 96.5% in the Colombian electric bus market and 99% in Bogotá. BYD is also successful in Chile: by the end of 2020, the brand had delivered 455 electric buses to Santiago de Chile, amounting to a local market share of around 56%.

What does this mean?

BYD is capturing large market shares in Latin America and is likely to further cement its role as one of the world's leading e-bus providers.