A UK Export Finance (UKEF) guarantee has awarded Northern Ireland-based bus company Wrightbus £50 million in financing to support its ambitious export strategy.
This export development guarantee sees the UK Export Credit Agency guaranteeing 80 per cent of the loan from Barclays.
This financing builds on the former governmental support Announced last year, it helps fulfill the prime minister’s priority of keeping the economy growing. The development gives Wrightbus critical working capital support as well as a more flexible way to distribute funds to support its business needs.
This will enable Wrightbus to deliver orders to new markets, such as Germany and North America, as well as additional orders in existing markets such as Singapore and Hong Kong.
The announcement comes a week after Investment Secretary Lord Johnson visited the Wrightbus site in Ballymena, County Antrim, as part of a wider visit to Northern Ireland. There, he met leading investors and companies ahead of the Northern Ireland Investment Summit to be held later in the year.
Investment Minister Lord Johnson said: “Wrightbus is a great example of a British business seizing the huge export opportunities around the world and embracing clean growth. The UK Export Finance support for Wrightbus will be a huge boost to its export journey, helping the company to create further growth local and functions.
“This is the kind of success we will build on at the Northern Ireland Investment Summit this autumn, which will be a catalyst for securing more investment, creating more jobs and enabling more businesses to seize export opportunities.”
The company generated 27% of its revenue from exports in 2022 and seeks to increase that by around a fifth by the end of 2023, thanks in part to support from the UK government. To facilitate this growth, Wrightbus plans to double its workforce by 2026, creating 1,000 new green jobs with most roles being located in the company’s Ballymena Centre.
There is strong demand for the company’s hydrogen-powered, carbon-neutral buses globally, with more than 600 buses of all types expected to be delivered by the end of 2023, up from 450 last year. Wrightbus now has the largest hydrogen fleet in the UK, operating 100 buses.
Jean-Marc Gallis, CEO of Wrightbus, said: “The support of the UKEF and Barclays has been fundamental to the development of Wrightbus. Flexible products fit the needs of our business, which is growing exponentially and requires significant financial space.
“We are excited about the next phase and are working within the Ballymena community and the wider Northern Ireland community to bring innovative British technology to the global market.”
James Baines, Global Head of Trading and Working Capital, Barclays, said: “Barclays is proud to be working alongside UKEF to enable UK businesses to gain the competitive edge when it comes to exporting.
“This new financing builds on our previous support of Wrightbus, providing critical flexibility that will enable further growth in exports and domestically, and continue the vital pivot towards zero-emissions sales.”
Based in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, Wrightbus introduced the world’s first hydrogen-powered double-decker bus in 2020, and also produces and exports electric-powered double-decker and single-decker buses. The company aims to manufacture 3,000 zero-emission buses by 2024, making up 10% of the total UK fleet. Wrightbus last month received a further £12m in government and industry backed funding.