English
“I expect the first 30 eco-friendly electric buses to be delivered in January—earlier than stipulated in the contract,” stated Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Transport Aleksandar Nikoloski this evening, in an interview with “360 Stepeni.” During the interview, he dismissed any concerns regarding the quality of the buses, adding that all of Europe relies on batteries manufactured in China.
“One thing is certain—and we know this because we are familiar with the technical specifications—the batteries will be produced in China. This is because, currently, it is impossible to find an electric bus on the European market that uses anything other than Chinese-made batteries.”
“For instance, during a state visit to the Czech Republic last year, I visited Skoda; they quoted an indicative price of 650,000 euros per bus. When I asked why the cost was so high—given that ours cost around 320,000—they explained that they are required to purchase batteries from China. This confirms what our market research indicated: everyone uses Chinese components. Will some parts be manufactured in China? Well, consider that we have an entire industry here in Macedonia—for example, the chassis for the Mercedes E-Class is manufactured in Bunardzhik.” “As for Audi—a large portion will now be produced in Bitola, at Kromberg & Schubert. Parts for Porsche are manufactured in Ohrid, at Kostel; yet, that doesn’t mean Porsche makes poor-quality vehicles just because some parts are produced at Kostel,” concluded Nikoloski.