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The existing diesel buses are to receive the SEA-Drive system and thus become purely electric school buses that also have a vehicle-to-grid function. It is not clear from the company's announcement whether SEA will actually do the retrofitting itself or whether it will primarily act as a supplier of its electric drives in the course of the deal. There it literally says: "SEA Electric and Midwest Transit Equipment have teamed up to equip 10,000 school buses with battery-electric drive systems".
The fact is that the retrofitting of the 10,000 school buses should be completed in the next five years and that the retrofit will affect both US type A and type C school bus vehicles. The former is the smallest US school bus shape with a length of 6 to 7.5 meters. It is based on a van chassis. The traditional Type-C school buses, on the other hand, are based on truck architectures.
SEA Electric states that the conversion will extend the service life of the buses by more than ten years and that two to three converted buses will be available for the price of a new electric bus. The company does not provide any more specific information on the price or the value of the order as a whole in its communication. Mike Menyhart, President Americas and Chief Strategy Officer at SEA Electric is quoted as saying: "The secondary use of fully electric school buses makes a lot of sense: It keeps costs down, opens up considerable availability, creates environmentally friendly jobs here in the USA and at the same time contributes to environmental protection and the health of the communities we serve. "
According to John McKinney, President and CEO of Midwest Transport Equipment, the partnership with SEA Electric will make it possible to respond more quickly to customer needs: “As the industry moves towards zero emissions, we are with our SEA Electric Partnership well positioned to play a leading role in the electrification movement, â€said John McKinney, President and CEO of Midwest Transport Equipment. The company is referred to in the announcement as "one of the largest school bus dealers in the country".
Briefly to classify: SEA Electric is a manufacturer of electric commercial vehicles in US classes 3 to 8, i.e. from light to heavy commercial vehicles. According to information from the beginning of August , SEA will deliver more than 500 electric commercial vehicles this year alone and plans to put more than 15,000 electric vehicles on the road by the end of 2023. A few weeks ago , SEA Electric announced an order for 1,150 electric trucks from GATR EV.
SEA Electric recently announced an electric platform for a small truck that can be driven with a normal car driver's license. In addition, the manufacturer recently closed a financing round of 42 million US dollars (around 36 million euros) to further expand its business activities. The main investor in this round was Exro Technologies, a Canadian company with which SEA Electric has also initiated a strategic partnership.