Pelican goes greener with £93.5 million bus deal

A major financing package will enable the delivery of hundreds of zero-emission buses across the UK.

Wakefield-based Pelican Engineering Co. has expanded its Green Loan and Sustainable Trade Instrument Facility from HSBC UK to £93.5 million, facilitating the supply of up to 600 battery electric buses from Chinese manufacturer Zhengzhou Yutong Bus company.

With HSBC’s support, Pelican is set to become one of the UK’s largest suppliers of zero emission buses, advancing sustainability in cities such as Glasgow, Cardiff, Leeds and Newcastle.

Jamie McCullough, corporate relationship director at HSBC UK, said: “Pelican’s growth highlights the pivotal role UK businesses have to play in the shift towards zero emissions transportation.

“We’re excited to continue backing the efforts of the business as it targets further growth, helping to decarbonise the UK transport sector.”

As the exclusive UK and Ireland distributor for Yutong, Pelican will distribute a mix of fully electric single and double-decker buses, intercity coaches, and airside buses to UK operators, bringing the total number of Pelican-supplied Yutong buses in the UK close to one thousand.

This initiative will reduce British transport emissions by an estimated 27,600 tonnes of CO2.

Richard Crump, managing director at Pelican, added: “HSBC UK has shared our vision and commitment to putting more electric buses into service across the UK since they funded our very first electric bus in 2017.

“With this Green Loan and Sustainable Trade Instrument Facility extension, we can continue to support the transition to zero-emission public transport, and we look forward to seeing these new buses serve communities nationwide. 

“We are proud of our long-standing relationships with both HSBC UK and Yutong and are excited to see these zero-emission buses on the road.” 

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