Giant Step from MAN Truck & Bus in Türkiye: Electric Bus Mass Production Started in Ankara Factory
MAN Truck & Bus took a giant step towards e-mobility in Türkiye, where it opened its first production facility outside Germany. Mass production of the fully electric city bus Lion’s City E has officially started at the MAN Ankara Factory, whose infrastructure has been strengthened with new investments. The Ankara Factory, which plays a key role in MAN’s sustainable transportation solutions with the production of Lion’s City E, has become a strategic bus production base on a global scale in line with the company’s zero emission strategy.
MAN Truck & Bus has completed an important stage in the transition to electric mobility in its production facility in Türkiye, in line with its sustainable transportation vision. Following the process that started with the first MAN Lion’s City E being taken off the line at the beginning of September, all tests and preparations were successfully completed and mass production was started. With the serial production of MAN Lion’s City E, Ankara became one of the company’s most important competence centers in battery electric bus production.
Barbaros Oktay: “We will respond more flexibly and quickly to customer demands”
MAN Truck & Bus Bus Unit President Barbaros Oktay stated that they have taken a very important step towards zero emissions with the start of electric bus production in Ankara and said:
“The restructuring we have initiated in Ankara is an integral part of MAN’s transformation process towards a sustainable future. With the steps we have taken and the investments we have made, we have laid the foundation for offering emission-free mobility solutions in high quantities and of superior quality in the long term. Today, as a result of these efforts, our start of electric bus production in Ankara is an important milestone in MAN’s e-mobility journey. With this investment, we are strengthening our bus production network and able to meet the increasing global demand for emission-free urban transportation solutions more effectively. Electric “Expanding bus production to include the Türkiye location will enable us to respond more flexibly to customer demands and optimize delivery times.”
Mehmet Şermet: “Ankara has become one of MAN’s important e-mobility centers”
MAN Türkiye A.Ş. CEO Mehmet Şermet pointed out that the strategic importance of Ankara in MAN’s global production network has increased and said:
“Turkey has always had a special place for MAN. Today, we are proud to realize a new first in our factory, which is MAN’s first production facility outside Germany. With the mass production of the fully electric city bus MAN Lion’s City E, Ankara has become one of the important e-mobility centers of the company. We have successfully accomplished this transformation, thanks to the superior competence of our employees and the serious investments we have made in infrastructure and equipment in the last two years. With our flexible structure that can produce all electric and conventional buses on the same line, we will embrace the technology of the future.” “We will export it to the world from Ankara.”
“Lion’s Coach E” will also be produced in Ankara in the future
More than half of MAN’s city buses, which have made significant investments in zero-emission transportation solutions, are currently coming off the production line as electric. In order to meet this increasing demand, the production infrastructure and employees in Ankara have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of e-mobility in recent months and the facility has been gradually transformed. In addition to MAN Lion’s City E, it is aimed to produce electric intercity buses and the new MAN Lion’s Coach E, developed for the travel industry, in Türkiye in the future.
Ankara Plays a Key Role in MAN’s e-Mobility Transformation
The electric city bus MAN Lion’s City E is now produced in Ankara after the Starachowice Factory in Poland started mass production in 2020. In both facilities, all electric and conventional buses can be flexibly manufactured on the same production line. MAN Lion’s City E stands out with its reliability, range and sustainability features; It offers a wide product range ranging from 10-meter compact versions to 18-meter articulated models with high passenger capacity and Low-Entry variants developed for intercity use. In addition, solutions are also provided to markets outside Europe with Lion’s Chassis E.
Automobile Magazine – English
