EIB provides €69 million loan to EMT Valencia for expansion of electric bus fleet

The European Investment Bank (EIB) and Valencia’s Empresa Municipal de Transportes (EMT) have signed a €69 million loan to help expand the city’s fleet of zero-emissions electric buses. The project includes the purchase of 145 new electric buses to replace older vehicles nearing the end of their useful life, and the installation of the necessary infrastructure to charge them.

This loan, announced in late December 2024, is a key step in a broader €172 million investment plan by EMT Valencia, aimed at transforming the city’s bus fleet into a modern, sustainable transport network. The city plans to purchase 215 electric and hybrid buses, alongside the necessary upgrades to depots and charging infrastructure.

EIB loan to EMT Valencia’s electrification plan

With the €69 million loan secured, further financing operations for hybrid buses are set to follow, totaling additional investments of €13.8 million.

By 2028, EMT plans to have a fleet of 527 buses, including 167 electric buses.

This project marks the beginning of the first major strategic, multi-year investment plan in EMT’s history. The total investment, approved by the City of Valencia, represents a sharp increase in funding for public transport—over €171 million over the next few years, compared to €130 million from 2016 to 2023.

EIB loan is part of a broader initiative to make Valencia’s public transport system more sustainable and efficient. The investment also include upgrades to bus depots, such as new parking spaces, fire safety systems, and IT infrastructure.

As mentioned above, by 2028, EMT aims to have a fleet of 527 buses, including 167 electric buses. The transition to zero-emissions buses will significantly reduce the fleet’s average age, which is currently over 10 years, bringing it down to just 6.5 years by the end of the decade. At that point, nearly 32% of the fleet will be fully electric, with 60.7% hybrid and just 7.6% diesel, the city states.

“We are acting without delay, because we have a very clear line of action. We want the best EMT, the most advanced and sustainable. Between 2016 and 2023, the previous municipal government invested €130 million, i.e. €40 million less, in almost twice the time. The investment of the previous managers of the municipal company was 16.3 million each year, while now it will be 34.3 million annually. The increase in investment is 111% with the current municipal government”, said Jesús Carbonell, EMT President and Councillor for Mobility.