Electric buses should be made in Wales not imported, says minister

Electric buses should be made in Wales instead of being imported from China, Wales' deputy minister for climate change has said.

Lee Waters wants to see an electric bus factory opened in Wales to create green jobs.

But one UK manufacturer said it had approached the Welsh government to build a factory and had received "no traction".

Recently Newport and Cardiff bus companies have bought Chinese vehicles.

Mr Waters told BBC Wales, he wanted to see green jobs created by manufacturing buses in Wales that "after all Welsh taxpayers are going to be paying for".

"Unless we make the effort it will never happen," he added.

One of a handful of UK based companies already making electric buses, Switch Mobility, said it had been trying to expand and bring jobs to Wales, but with no success.

Andy Palmer, its Chief Executive, said his factory in Yorkshire was full to capacity and wanted to set up new factories.

"I am looking around for places to expand Switch and I have taken the opportunity to look at Wales because in my previous company I built a car factory in Wales," he said.

"So far, at least, we have had very little traction," he said.

He said Wales was losing out on skilled jobs and "other areas of the UK are moving much more aggressively and seem to have an appetite for expansion of our facility".

Mr Palmer said the electric buses that his company made were entirely engineered and manufactured in the UK, with no parts coming from further than Europe.

A Welsh government spokesperson said ministers were "committed to promoting Wales as an outstanding destination for companies to invest".

In Wales, Newport and Cardiff bus companies have already bought Chinese electric buses made by a company called Yutong.

Mr Waters argues purchasing buses from China results in millions of pounds leaving Wales, but he did not criticise the companies decision.

He praised them for moving to cleaner transport, but he said many more electric buses would be needed across Wales.

While the Yutong buses are purchased from China, they include Isri seats made in Wrexham, and the buses are finally assembled by Pelican Bus and Coach in Castleford in Yorkshire.

Managing Director of Newport Transport Scott Pearson said he would buy Welsh electric buses if the price was right and they were comparable vehicles.

He added vehicles from China had been electric for the last 20 years, so there was "some sort of comfort" that they would be reliable.

Mr Pearson added that having an electric bus manufacturer in Wales would "be a big ask" but the country could benefit from having a "final fit manufacturer".

"So we can have say the main chassis of the vehicle shipped over and then perhaps the final fit of the vehicles - seats, destination systems, CCTV - all completed in Wales through either Welsh suppliers or UK suppliers," he said.

"So I'm all for what the Deputy Minister has said, but we've got to be realistic".

Mr Waters' comments come as Carmarthenshire council, which includes his own constituency, is tendering for suppliers for its own fleet.

The Welsh government has given Carmarthenshire County Council £4.8m for a new bus depot in Carmarthen and eight electric buses.