A £50m loan backed by the UK government will help boost exports of electric and hydrogen-powered buses.
The financing will enable bus manufacturer Wrightbus to expand into new markets, such as Germany and North America, and meet demand in existing markets like Singapore and Hong Kong.
Export credit agency UK Export Finance (UKEF) has agreed to guarantee 80% of the loan from Barclays Bank.
It follows previous government support announced last year, giving Wrightbus working capital support as well as a more flexible way to deploy the funds to support its business needs, UKEF said.
Wrightbus generated 27% of its revenues from exports in 2022 and aims to grow this by nearly a fifth by the end of 2023. The company plans to double its workforce in the next three years, creating 1,000 new jobs.
Based in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, Wrightbus introduced the world’s first hydrogen-powered double-decker bus in 2020, and also produces and exports electric-powered single and double-decker buses. The business is aiming to manufacture 3,000 zero-emissions buses by 2024, which would comprise 10% of the UK’s total fleet.
