AS the local bus assemblers have already been struggling hard to revive their sales amid ongoing imports of new buses, the Sindh government has planned to add 8,000 electric buses to the People Bus Service in phases.

Around 1,500 buses are planned for the city in Phase 1 for the first year, with 50 already operational electric buses.

Another 1,500 buses will be added to the fleet in the second phase, while 4,000-6,000 will be deployed in the city in the final phase. Besides, a good number of buses have already been imported from China for the People`s Bus Service.

Around 100,000 people are utilising the Red Line Bus service daily, for which the Sindh government is providing a subsidy of Rs50 per passenger.

However, reports are coming up relating to a hike in fares by 20 per cent to 60pc on various routes from next month as the provincial government is planning to reduce or eliminate the subsidy in order to purchase new buses. Passengers travelling within 15km and above 15km will pay Rs80 and Rs120, respectively. Currently, the minimum and maximum fares are Rs50 and Rs100, respectively.

On the other hand, the three main members of the Pakistan Automotive Manufacturers Association (PAMA) are unable to reach a peak in sales. As per PAMA data, Hino sold 65 buses in 1HFY25 against 80 units in the same period last year, while Master and Issue sales rose to 167 and 72 units from 36 and 56 units in the above period. Despite the rise in sales of some assemblers, the number of units is alarming for such big companies.

In the last 15 years, bus sales of PAMA members hovered between 454 and 1,017 units. In FY17, these three assemblers achieved the highest sales of 1,130 units.

Director General, PAMA, Abdul Waheed Khan said the local bus assemblers offer a variety of models capable of meeting local demand. They can roll out electric vehicles (EVs) by making investments to modify their plants.

Unfortunately, 80pc production capacity of the entire heavy vehicle assemblers is going unused, resulting in massive fixed costs and economies of scale, he said.

Procurement of locally made buses by the provincial governments will create new jobs, save foreign exchange, benefit cost-effectiveness, propel economic growth, and ensure an effective after-sales service, Mr Khan explained.

Daewoo Pak Motors Limited (DPML) is currently manufacturing Daewoo and King Long brands of buses ranging from non-air-conditioned city buses to luxury intercity buses. `Our manufacturing facility is also fully equipped to undertakee-bus manufacturing,` Director Marketing and Sales, DPML, Muhammad Tahir Jawed said, claiming that new e-bus manufacturing could begin in a few months in Pakistan.

The availability of good-quality e-buses in our part of the world is virtually limited to China and Korea only, and support to the local manufacturer from these countries could provide multiple choices to the fleet operators, he said.

It would be imperative for local manufacturers to have assurance from the federal and provincial governments in the following aspects: minimum annual orders of 1,000 units of e-buses to each local manufacturer for at least 10 years, relaxation in import tariffs of completely knocked-down (CKD) kits, tax-free import of plant and machinery for assembly, and interest-free facilities.

Mr Jawed said the bus industry has been passing through a tough period since 2020 and has faced a severe decline in volume due to the economic situation. `E-bus manufacturing could be a breathing space to utilise the currently idle capacities of local bus plants,` he added.

The completely built units (CBU) import cost of a bus is around $7,000, whereas the CKD kit freight cost per unit is around $2,000, he explained. The local content in CBU buses is zero, but after the first batch of 100 buses, almost 20pc components would be localised to support local production while generating employment for manufacturers and vendors.

A few half-hearted projects were initiated in the past in dif-ferent cities of Pakistan in the shape of CNG buses and Urban Transport System Metro Buses, but all failed to serve the majority of people due to a lack of long-term policies, inadequate expertise to develop urban transportation infrastructure, minimum attraction for fleet operators, and inconsistent and uncertain fare structure.

Mr Jawed said that the current provincial governments are slowly moving to operate a limited number of e-buses in different cities, but the lengthy timeframe to initiate the project lessens its financial attraction for local manufacturers and operators.

Auto-part maker, exporter, and expert Mashood Ali Khan said the import of 8,000 electric buses will put an additional burden on the foreign exchange reserves, which the country cannot sustain as it needs dollars to cover up imports of essential raw materials for the local manufacturing of essential food items. Moreover, the non-availability of after-sales support for imported buses, especially spare parts, has caused a huge loss of foreign exchange spent on the import of buses.

`The volume of 8,000 imported electric buses is so massive compared to the country`s total demand and sales of locally made buses,` he said, adding that instead of a huge import plan, a joint venture with Chinese assemblers for the local assembly of diesel buses or new e-buses may be planned in view of the huge import cost of these buses. •