China’s Zhongtong plans an electric bus plant in Brazil within two years

Chinese electric bus maker Zhongtong should have its first production unit in Brazil within two years, according to TEVX, its representative in the country, in an interview with Agência AutoData published on October 5. TEVX says it is in advanced talks over three sites for the plant.

“We will wait for the end of the election period to define the location,” TEVX CEO Carlos Eduardo Souza said. According to him, local production is a condition of the representation agreement. The goal is to win up to 15% of the national market and operate 5,000 to 6,000 buses in the country in coming years. TEVX has also asked for technology transfer and product adaptation to Brazil.

Zhongtong has global capacity of more than 30,000 units a year, has delivered more than 300,000 vehicles, over 100,000 of them electric or hybrid, and is present in more than 110 countries. Souza said incentives for full industrial production matter, but it is not yet clear how they will work under tax reform.

CSP take: electric buses are one of the segments where Chinese local production is advancing fastest in Brazil, driven by public procurement. For operators and suppliers, the points to watch are the site decision and the promised local-content level. This reading is ours, not AutoData’s.