Hitachi and FirstGroup set up battery leasing joint venture
By Luke Willetts - 29th December 2023
UK / Japan - Hitachi Ltd of Tokyo, Japan, and UK transport operator, FirstGroup Plc have formed a joint venture, called NextGen AssetCo for leasing up to 1,000 electric bus batteries for GBP 100 million as part of FirstGroup’s plan to electrify its electric bus fleet in the UK.
This new company will purchase the batteries, which will then be leased to First Bus over an eight-year period. The first phase is an initial GBP 10 million investment from both firms. Hitachi will also provide its battery charging and management services and software for the 1000 e-buses that are set to come onto UK roads over the next few years. This will allow FirstGroup to optimise fleet efficiency and aid in the operator's goal to run a fully zero-emission fleet by 2035.
