65 brand-new Mercedes-Benz Citaro buses come to Budapest

Budapest public transport company BKV will take delivery of 65 new Mercedes-Benz Citaro K buses in the second half of 2025, Gergely Karácsony, the capital’s mayor, said on Facebook on Wednesday.

BKV will upgrade about 8pc of its fleet with the procurement, Karácsony said.

Photo: FB/Karácsony

The head of the Hungarian Investment Promotion Agency (HIPA) highlighted a commitment to make the country the leading R+D centre for battery technology in Europe by 2030 addressing the Hungarian Battery Week conference in Budapest on Wednesday, HIPA said. Istvan Joo specified a commitment to make Hungary the leader in Europe in terms of registered patents in the European battery sector and said work was underway to make the country one of the leading European centres for battery industry related higher education and vocational training.

He added that making Hungary a hub for business service centres in the battery industry was another pledge. Hungary is committed to maintaining its position among the top five global players in battery production throughout the decade, he said. He added that the country was striving to create a “complete ecosystem” for battery manufacturing and had developed a comprehensive supplier network. Hungary encourages new partners to bring high value-added activities to the country and convinces companies that already have a presence in the country to move towards R+D activities and university collaborations, he said. Joo noted that lithium-ion batteries were Hungary’s most significant export product in 2023, accounting for 6.4pc of the total.

Chinese CATL will soon start production

Since 2016, HIPA has supported battery manufacturing investments with a combined value of around EUR 24bn that are expected to create almost 33,000 jobs, he said. In addition to the plants of Samsung SDI on the outskirts of Budapest and SK On group’s in Komarom and Ivancsa that are already operating, Chinese battery maker CATL will soon start production at its base in Debrecen, while EVE Power’s project in Debrecen and Sunwoda’s investment in Nyiregyhaza are progressing well, he added. Joo said that China was “at the heart” of the revolution in electrification, pointing out that of the ten biggest battery makers in the world, with a 95pc market share, six were Chinese, three South Korean and one Japanese.

CATL in Germany. Photo: facebook.com/drpappl

“It is clear that the East has taken over the industry on a global scale,” he added. Joo said the government’s Eastern Opening policy had helped to make Hungary a “meeting point” between West and East, for big German car makers and Asian new energy suppliers. He added that the government’s strategy of connectivity, a demonstration of a policy of economic neutrality, had been a window of opportunity for cooperation between Eastern and Western companies.

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Featured image: depositphotos.com