The preparations were in full swing and at VDL Bus & Coach there was a firm belief in organizing a fantastic event, but the launch of the new generation VDL Citea – planned from 5 to 11 September this year – is cancelled. That is what the digital trade magazine Passenger Transport says. Around 300 new-generation electric city buses have already been ordered from VDL, but not one has rolled off the production line yet.

VDL Bus & Coach came up with this statement:

“The event where VDL Bus & Coach was to present its new generation of electric buses has been canceled due to persistent disruptions in the supply chains caused by external factors. As a result, the minimum requirements to host a high-quality launch event cannot be met. This is reason for VDL Groep to cancel the presentation.”

“A major innovation project, such as the new generation VDL Citea, always entails risks and challenges in terms of planning and organisation. You take this into account and adjust and adjust where necessary. We have done this in recent years, to control the impact of, for example, the corona pandemic, but also the cyber attack on VDL.”

“VDL concludes that the expected relaxation in supply chains has not materialized. Full recovery is expected to take more time. The war in Ukraine also plays an important role in the prevailing shortage of materials and parts. This has implications for our launch event. As you know, we place high demands on what we present to our customers and other interested parties. Unfortunately, at the moment we have insufficient guarantees that we can achieve the quality level that we are aiming for.”

“VDL Bus & Coach focuses on customer orders. The new generation of VDL Citea has already been sold in various countries and will be deployed from the end of this year and in 2023 in cities and regions: the Netherlands (Amsterdam and Eindhoven), Finland (Kotka and Lahti), Belgium (all of Flanders), Germany (Oberhausen and Braunschweig) and France (Bordeaux). In total, this concerns more than 300 electric buses. For the design of the new generation of VDL Citea, VDL Bus & Coach received two important design prizes: a Red Dot Award and the iF Design Award.”

“The order book for the new generation VDL Citea is well filled. In that regard, we see no impact on turnover. Our customers know that we have developed a versatile mobility platform that answers their questions, wishes and ambitions. In this way we continue to lead the way in the public transport market, where we are the market leader in Europe with almost 200 million electric kilometers. We could not wish for a better starting point. We therefore continue to actively sell according to the production plans with confidence. VDL Bus & Coach is considering how the new generation of VDL Citea will be presented at a later date, also in connection with the trade fair season in September and October.”