Northern Irish bus manufacturer Wrightbus has secured an order from Hong Kong public transport operator Citybus for 20 battery-electric 6×2 StreetDeck Electroliner double-deck buses.
The order marks the first international contract for Wrightbus’s new triple-axle StreetDeck Electroliner model, the company said.
The 12-metre buses will be manufactured at Wrightbus’s facility in Malaysia and are scheduled for delivery in 2027 as part of the company’s expansion strategy in the Asia-Pacific region.
According to Wrightbus, the contract was awarded following an open tender process in which Citybus evaluated both technical performance and commercial value.
The agreement is valued at approximately £7 million.
Wrightbus said the new buses are designed to carry up to 130 passengers, including 82 seated passengers, and offer an operating range of up to 300 kilometres.
The order comes more than two decades after Wrightbus vehicles first entered service in Hong Kong.
Jo Bamford, executive chairman of Wrightbus, described the agreement as an important step for the company’s international zero-emission vehicle business.
“The StreetDeck has become the leading double-deck bus in the UK and we are proud to now be bringing that proven technology and operational experience to customers in Asia,” Bamford said.
He added that more than 3,000 Wrightbus zero-emission buses are currently operating globally and have collectively travelled more than 200 million kilometres.
Bamford also said production in Malaysia would help support regional demand while increasing manufacturing flexibility at Wrightbus’s Ballymena facility in Northern Ireland.
“By producing these vehicles at our Malaysia facility, we are able to support customers across Asia more effectively while also freeing capacity in our Ballymena factory, as global demand for zero-emission transport continues to grow,” he said.
Daniel Castro, regional director Asia Pacific at Wrightbus, said the order represented a key development for the company’s regional operations.
“Securing this contract with Citybus represents a key step in Wrightbus’s expansion into Asia Pacific,” Castro said.
“Hong Kong is one of the most demanding double-deck bus markets in the world, and this order reflects confidence in both our product and our ability to deliver and support fleets at scale in the region,” he added.
Hong Kong has previously introduced electric double-deck buses from UK manufacturers. In 2025, the MTR Corporation received deliveries of 35 Alexander Dennis Enviro500EV buses from Alexander Dennis.