The True Post (Web News)The City of Brampton has announced a historic $4 billion partnership with Zenobe, a global fleet electrification and battery storage specialist headquartered in London, UK, to fully electrify Brampton Transit’s bus fleet. It is the largest zero-emission transit initiative in Canada. The historic announcement was made in Ottawa, where Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown and Zenobe leadership met with UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer to recognize the significant partnership between Canada and the United Kingdom.
The agreement will kick off the first phase of a 10-year electrification framework that will eventually replace Brampton’s entire diesel-powered bus fleet with 1,000 battery electric buses, supporting more than 40 million annual passenger trips. Once completed, the program is expected to eliminate the majority of transportation-related greenhouse gas emissions, which currently account for approximately 70% of the city’s corporate GHG emissions. In addition to significant environmental benefits, the partnership is expected to support 5,000 direct and indirect jobs in Canada and the United Kingdom and provide $1 billion in foreign investment in Canada.
The announcement builds on the Canada Infrastructure Bank’s (CIB) investment of up to $400 million to support the purchase of 450 zero-emission buses (ZEBs) by 2027. The CIB’s financing contributes to the initial capital costs of the ZEBs, and specifically battery electric buses, to help accelerate the electrification of the city’s bus fleet.
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We are building a clean, healthy future for our residents: Patrick Brown
Mayor Patrick Brown said this historic investment marks a turning point for public transit in Brampton and across Canada. By transitioning to an all-electric bus fleet, we are not only reducing emissions, creating jobs, improving air quality but also building a clean, healthy future for our residents. Brampton is proud to lead one of the largest zero-emission transit projects in North America and we are grateful to our partners in the UK and Canada for helping make this vision a reality.
UK One of our oldest and closest trading partners: Maninder Sidhu
Minister of International Trade and Member of Parliament for Brampton East Maninder Sidhu said that the UK is one of our oldest and closest trading partners and I am very excited that our relationship will be further deepened through the investment partnership between the City of Brampton and Zenobe. As Canada continues our efforts on trade diversification, this investment through UK partners is great news for our economy, creating thousands of jobs.
It demonstrates UK leadership in clean transport and infrastructure: Fauzia Younis
UK Consul-General to Ontario Fauzia Younis said this important partnership between Zenobe and the City of Brampton is a powerful example of how UK-Canada collaboration can deliver real-world solutions to global challenges. It demonstrates UK leadership in clean transport and infrastructure, while creating skilled jobs and driving innovation on both sides of the Atlantic. I am delighted to see British expertise helping shape a more sustainable future for one of Canada’s fastest growing cities and we look forward to this project serving as a model for future international collaboration.
We are excited to expand our presence in Canada with Brampton: Steven Meersman “
We bring significant experience working with local and federal public sector partners to enable and accelerate their transition to electric fleets,” says Steven Meersman, co-founder and director of Zenobe. “Our customized match-funding options, combined with experience delivering more than 120 electric depots globally, reduce costs and ease the inevitable path to zero-emission fleets. We are excited to expand our presence in Canada with Brampton, as we jointly achieve their financial and environmental objectives. We hope this will serve as a model for other projects currently under development.”
This partnership will also drive local economic development: Heidi Dempster,
General Manager of Brampton Transit, City of Brampton, said, “With one of the largest zero-emission bus programs in North America, Brampton is setting a new standard for sustainable, modern public transportation. In addition to reducing emissions and improving air quality for our residents, this partnership will also drive local economic development, creating thousands of jobs and building expertise here in Brampton. We are proud to work with Zenobe and all partners as we fulfill Council’s vision for a cleaner, healthier and more resilient future for one of Canada’s fastest growing communities.
