That bus builder VDL Groep lost a bus order to a Chinese company was not well received at the time by members of the House of Representatives and public opinion. Chinese BYD Auto, a car manufacturer headquartered in Shenzhen, China, set to work on an important order from Keolis. The company produces electric vehicles such as cars, buses, bicycles and trucks.
The question was clear when asked whether VDL and BYD had created a level playing field and fair competition. It is a private transaction by Keolis, the winner of the tender, who purchased the buses.
“The buses were not purchased through a tendering process. The Provincial Executive of the provinces of Flevoland, Gelderland and Overijssel has tendered the cross-border public transport concession IJssel-Vecht. The buses were subsequently purchased by the winner of that concession, Keolis Nederland. The purchase of the buses by Keolis was a private transaction. ”
government subsidy, Chinese aid
The Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation and the Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate recently replied to questions. For example, the annual accounts show that BYD received € 300 million in support from the government, of which it is not possible to trace why this is exactly and which part of it relates to the electric buses.
BYD Auto was established in 2003 as part of BYD Company Limited (BYD), one of China's largest private companies. BYD Company Limited is a high tech company that focuses on clean energy technologies from generation and storage to application. The company is one of the largest producers of rechargeable batteries in the world and now also a very large manufacturer of electric vehicles. More than 50.000 BYD electric buses worldwide are on the road.
BYD is 100% publicly traded, partly in Hong Kong and partly in mainland China, thus qualifying as a private company. However, parent company BYD does receive government support in the form of, for example, subsidies for R&D projects or indirectly through purchase subsidies on electric vehicles, as part of Chinese policy to promote the use of electric vehicles.
failure of this order by the VDL Groep
Mona Keijzer, State Secretary for Economic Affairs and Climate, would like to see Dutch companies bring in orders, especially if production also takes place in the Netherlands. From this perspective, the failure of the order by VDL Groep is disappointing. After all, if these 259 electric buses were to be produced in the Netherlands, it would have contributed to Dutch employment and the development of knowledge in the field of electric buses.
production in Hungary
The buses were purchased by transport company Keolis, the holder of the public transport concession IJssel-Vecht. Keolis indicates that for the time being it looks like the BYD buses are produced in China and possibly also partly in Hungary. According to a letter to the House of Representatives in response to written questions from members Amhaouch and Palland (both CDA), the Dutch business community is still benefiting to some extent.
For example, many interior components are purchased from Dutch and (Western) European suppliers. For example, the Dutch companies Ventura Systems (doors), Carvision (cameras) and Franz Kiel NL (chairs) are suppliers. Furthermore, for example, the German manufacturers ZF and Init supply the axles and on-board computers of the buses respectively. Finally, maintenance will take place in the Netherlands.
Also read: VDL Groep wins Dutch Innovation Prize 2019 in Kurhaus Scheveningen
