Hydrogen-electric bus and ‘retro’ electric motorcycle take share of £49m funding

A hydrogen-electric bus and a ‘retro’ electric motorcycle are among 47 low-carbon transport projects to benefit from £49m new government funding.

Large-scale battery manufacturing in Scotland and a pioneering battery recycling scheme also received money today (3 November), as the government aims to reduce transport sector emissions and create thousands of jobs.

The £49m is shared between three separate funds. Thirty-one projects are receiving a portion of £10m through the Automotive Transformation Fund, supporting development of low-carbon technologies such as motors and batteries.

Thurso+ aims to upscale battery cell production in Scotland, boosting productivity and supplying to specialist vehicle manufacturers, while Talga in Cambridge aims to increase energy density of batteries.

The APC16 competition is awarding £29m to six projects, with the winners expected to create 2,880 jobs. The Recovas scheme from European Metal Recycling in Warrington will develop infrastructure to collect and recycle electric vehicles and their batteries, enabling reuse of materials and saving manufacturers thousands of pounds compared to shipping them abroad.

In Banbury, the Electric BSA project will develop a ‘true retro motorcycle… powered by a battery-powered electric engine’.

A further 12 projects are receiving a share of £10m through the Advanced Route to Market Demonstrator competition. Nissan will implement automation technologies to quickly charge batteries in the factory, aiming to increase productivity and cut costs on the electric vehicle production line.

Bamford Bus Company in London will deliver a zero-emission electric single-deck bus that can either be powered by batteries or a hydrogen fuel cell. The vehicle will test new technology and help operators decide on the optimum blend of electric and fuel-cell buses.

Transport minister Rachel Maclean said the projects “will boost our transition to zero-emission vehicles, helping us meet our greenhouse-gas reduction goals and driving growth by increasing skilled jobs in the UK automotive sector”.

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