(BRK.A), (BRK.B)
BYD Canada has received orders for nine long range, zero emission, battery-electric buses.
The orders came the Société de transport de Montréal (STM) and the Réseau de transport de Longueuil (RTL).
RTL will receive five 30-foot buses and STM will receive an order of four of the same model.
The buses will make an immediate improvement to air quality and noise levels in both cities. These buses alone will deliver a reduction in carbon emissions of more than 600 metric tons each year. This will mean a total reduction of 7200 tons over the operating life of the vehicles.
“Long range Electric Battery buses make sense in Quebec,” said BYD Canada’s Vice President Ted Dowling. “We are using Hydro Quebec’s clean electricity to charge our buses overnight. This is the best use of surplus power and will save STM and RTL over $100,000 a year in diesel costs.”
The order from Longueuil was BYD Canada’s first order of heavy duty electric buses in Quebec. Together with STM’s order in Montreal this is the beginning of a large transit transformation to zero emission vehicles in the Province.
“The buses are the first of what we hope will become an important part of the fleets in both communities and others in Quebec,” said Dowling. “This would not have happened without the climate change leadership shown by Mayors Valerie Plante and Sylvie Parent, in Montreal and Longueuil, along with the support of their transit agency leaders in STM and RTL.”
The order puts STM and RTL ahead of the Federal Ministry of Environment and Climate Change’s new carbon pollution regulations for heavy-duty vehicles starting in 2020.
BYD is the world leader in zero emission buses. BYD Canada was the pioneer in Canada and is now the market leader. In addition to this ground-breaking order in Quebec, BYD Canada has buses on order or in operation in Toronto, Victoria, and St. Albert and Grand Prairie in Alberta.
There are over 35,000 BYD electric buses currently in service worldwide.
BYD and Berkshire Hathaway
In 2008, Berkshire Hathaway bet on BYD’s potential, purchasing 225 million shares. It’s an investment that has paid off handsomely. Berkshire’s original investment of $230 million has grown in value almost ten-fold, and is now worth roughly $1.96 billion.
For More on BYD, read the Special Report: BYD, Berkshire’s Tesla.
© 2018 David Mazor
Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.