This time, Higer electric midibuses are coming to Hungary with Goldi Mobility’s involvement

Another three Chinese electric midibuses are arriving in Hungary: following the three electric midibuses ordered by Székesfehérvár and marketed under the Goldion E9 name, similar vehicles will once again expand the domestic electric fleet with the involvement of Goldi Mobility. The three new midibuses will be put into service by HOOM Kft., with their purchase made possible by state funding awarded under the Green Bus Programme.

Although the vehicles will arrive under the same Goldion E9 model name, they do not in fact come from the same manufacturer. While the midibuses procured for Székesfehérvár are built by Zonson Smart Auto Corporation, HOOM Kft.’s vehicles will come from the factory of Higer Bus, Scania’s Chinese bodywork partner. In this case, the Goldion E9L name denotes Higer’s Azure 9 model, developed specifically for the European market.

The vehicles will be deployed by HOOM Kft. in local public transport in Biatorbágy. The company received a non-repayable grant of HUF 486,309,534 under the Green Bus Programme for the procurement of the vehicles and the charging infrastructure. The charging infrastructure required to serve the electric buses will be installed at HOOM Kft.’s depot in Budaörs.

The exact extent of the vehicles’ domestic added value — beyond import and tasks related to registration and entry into service — is not yet known. What is known, however, is that in this case the Chinese manufacturer will supply the midibuses in a version nearly 8.9 metres long and capable of carrying 45 passengers. Direct propulsion is provided by a centrally mounted Dana MD100F electric motor, capable of delivering 140 kW rated output and 200 kW peak output, while energy is supplied by a CATL battery pack with a capacity of 266.6 kWh. According to Goldi Mobility, the buses may be capable of achieving a range of up to 381 kilometres on a single charge.