Largest Electric Bus Fleet in World Launches – BYD

By Bruce Hubbard
From BYD press release

Largest Electric Bus Fleet in World Launches – BYD
Delivers First Orders

CHANGSHA, PRC – BYD , manufacturer of the first long-range, all-electric bus , has
been selected as the sole eBUS provider for the 2011 International Universiade Games which will be held in Shenzhen, China. BYD was awarded the order of over 300 eBUS-12’s to be delivered before August 2011.
 
After the Universiade Games, these 300 eBUSes will be incorporated into Shenzhen’s city bus fleet – creating the largest all-electric bus fleet in the world.

In line with BYD’s vision for a zero-emission eco-system, the eBUS is the first pure electric bus designed and manufactured independently by BYD and is a confluence of BYD’s technical capabilities. At the core of the eBUS technology is BYD’s in-wheel motor drive system and the Iron Phosphate or “Fe” battery technology.

Because the drive system requires no axel, the eBUS floor can sit lower than any other bus, making it very riderfriendly.

The Fe battery boasts the highest safety, longest service life and most environmentally friendly
rechargeable chemistry. With these technologies, the BYD eBUS achieves a “loaded bus” city driving range of more than 150 miles (or 250 Km) and it only takes about half an hour to achieve a 50% state-of-charge using BYD’s proprietary fast charging. The eBUS also integrates BYD solar panels on the bus roof, converting solar energy to electricity which is stored in the Fe batteries and can completely offset the eBUS air-conditioning load  (extending the range on sunny days).
 
eBUS fleet testing has been conducted over the first half of 2011 and is referenced in the “BYD Fleet Summary”   released April 29th , 2011. The all-electric test fleet using the eBUS-12 has now logged over 33,649 all-electric miles  with the eBUS predominantly charged off-peak at the station terminal,
utilizing the lowest night-time energy rates.

BYD is ranked #1 at the top of Bloomberg’s and BusinessWeek's 2009 Tech 100 List
and is the leading manufacturer of advanced, environmentally-friendly battery technologies like the BYD’s Iron Phosphate battery. BYD’s solar panels and LED lighting systems have TUV/CE and UL listings, and the company enjoys rapid growth in consumer electronics space and automobile manufacturing under its BYD brand. With investments from Warren Buffett
(Berkshire Hathaway) and MidAmerican Energy Holdings, today, BYD is the fastest-growing Chinese
automotive and green energy technology manufacturer.