After three years, Alstom is halting their EV bus production. By the end of 2021, the production lines will be stopped, and unless a buyer will take over, most of the operations will be shut down. Twenty employees will remain active to assure maintenance for the existing vehicles in operations with RATP.
Just two years ago, Alstom was one of the winners of a contract to supply electric buses to the French operator. However, this was not enough to maintain profitability.
PSR Analysis: We believe that electric buses have a great future, particularly in Europe. According to our database CV Link™, alternative drive buses, including Hybrid, Fuel Cells and Battery Electric, will grow at a 22% CAGR between 2020 and 2030.
In the same time frame, buses powered by combustion engines will grow at a modest 2% CAGR. This will redesign the European market, with Alternative drive buses representing up to 55% of the units produced by 2030.
Despite the positive outlook, pressure on European bus manufacturers is already very high. The competition is fierce, with the likes of Chinese manufacturer BYD with a strong footprint in the old continent and hundreds of buses produced every year in Europe.
Volvo is the leader in Hybrid buses and it’s working on increasing its share in full electric products. VDL, Solaris and CNH Industrial are amongst the most recognised European manufacturers of electric buses.
With such strong players already operating in the market, it’s critical to be able to meet operators and customer needs to prosper and survive. Currently, 20 companies are producing alternative drive busses in Europe (most probably 19 as of January 2022). We fear, that in the coming years, we won’t have so many, with smaller companies unable to keep up with the big players investments and technology development. PSR
Emiliano Marzoli is Manager European-Operations, for Power Systems Research
