Offshore fleet decision criticised
CHRISTCHURCH: A Canterbury bus manufacturer is disappointed government funding for a new public transport fleet has gone offshore.
The New Zealand Green Investment Fund (NZGIF) is contributing $20 million to United Kingdom fleet and battery storage specialist ZenobA for the production of 18 electric buses.
The buses are being supplied to local operator Go Bus Transport Ltd for its Christchurch fleet following an announcement in April.
But Global Bus Ventures chief executive Tim Duncan said government funding for imported product was perplexing.
‘‘We’re really pushing to build local and we like supporting the local industry,’’ Mr Duncan said.
‘‘There’s a huge economic and environmental benefit for building local and it is disappointing to see imported product that is substantially heavier.’’
Mr Duncan said he believed the company’s buses were about two to three tonnes lighter and so did not require a heavy vehicle permit.
The Rolleston firm is the country’s only manufacturer building buses from scratch, including the country’s first zeroemission hydrogen bus.
National Party Selwyn MP Nicola Grigg criticised the move to outsource production offshore, saying Global Bus Ventures had been neglected.
‘‘I think there is a moral obligation here and I think most New Zealanders would agree that if we’re going to be spending tens of millions of dollars on lowemission buses then we should be spending it on New Zealandbased companies,’’ she said.
Questions remained about the longterm costs for producing buses offshore, Ms Grigg said. The Bus and Coaches Association believed production for lowemission buses going offshore made sense.
Chief executive Ben McFadgen said Go Bus leasing their assets to ZenobA minimised risk. It could invest in electric vehicles without spending huge amounts.
‘‘We’re still at the beginning of this technology and there’s still a long way to go around its development.’’
However, a balanced approach was required and local manufacturers still needed to be considered, Mr McFadgen said.
NZGIF chief executive Craig Weise said the arrangement with ZenobA reduced one of the ‘‘main barriers to transition and upfront costs’’.
‘‘The decision around service solution providers is a commercial one for counterparties, in this case, Go Bus.
‘‘It is not appropriate for NZGIF to comment on the commercial arrangement between Go Bus and ZenobA.’’