Hanover, Düsseldorf. Mercedes-Benz wants to defend itself against the rise of Chinese brands in Europe with a new electric bus for city transport. On Tuesday, the manufacturer presented a near-production prototype of the eCitaro electric city bus series, which is scheduled to come onto the market in 2028. It is the first bus that Mercedes developed from scratch as an electric vehicle.
This has the advantage that the batteries can now be distributed across the underbody and roof. Because there is no installation space for the diesel engine, there is a completely flat area for the passengers. “The offensive further development is a response to the competitors,” said the boss of Daimler Buses, Till Oberwörder (55), in an interview with the Handelsblatt. The bus division of the Dax group Daimler Truck includes the brands Mercedes and Setra.
In bus transport, it is already clear what is likely to threaten German car manufacturers even more in the coming years: manufacturers from the Far East are rapidly taking market share from domestic providers, especially in the electric segment.
In the European bus market, Chinese brands accounted for almost eleven percent of new registrations in the first half of the year - a multiple of the 2.4 percent from the whole of 2021, as an analysis by the Dataforce data service for the Handelsblatt shows. The Chinese already have a market share of 31 percent for electric buses.
This puts established manufacturers like Daimler Buses under pressure. For intercity buses, which often run through towns on medium-long routes, the manufacturer's share of new registrations has fallen from 21 to 15 percent since 2021, while the Chinese, starting from zero, are now at 13 percent.
According to Dataforce, Daimler Buses can maintain its market share for city buses at around 19 percent. And for coaches that cover longer distances, the manufacturer has even increased its share from 23 to 41 percent since 2021 thanks to the premium brand Setra.
The bus business has always been very competitive, says Oberwörder, who has been head of the Daimler bus business since 2018. Now there are new competitors on the electrical side. “We have a lot of respect for the competition, but we can also do a lot ourselves.”
Oberwörder also wants to use its workshop network to differentiate itself from the Chinese competition, which has fewer service points. “With the largest bus-specific service network in all of Europe and a fast supply of spare parts, we can differentiate ourselves very well.” The manufacturer wants to invest up to 200 million euros in expanding the service network in the coming years.
Daimler is installing LFP batteries, which consist of lithium and iron phosphate, in the new city buses. These are cheaper than the previous NMC batteries made of nickel, manganese and cobalt. They are also considered to be longer lasting. In addition, the articulated bus is 750 kilograms lighter thanks to the electric architecture, which makes operation more efficient.
“Our development goal was for the customer to have significantly lower costs over the life cycle of the bus,” says Oberwörder. Chinese brands offer buses significantly cheaper, and unlike cars, there are no customs duties for commercial vehicles for exports to Europe. In Europe, the brands BYD and Yutong from China are particularly widespread. Yutong is the world's largest bus manufacturer.
Daimler is the only manufacturer that still produces buses in Germany. The shell from Mannheim has now been relocated to the Czech Republic in order to save costs. However, the buses will continue to be manufactured in Mannheim and Neu-Ulm. “I am firmly convinced that the expertise we have in Germany is a differentiating feature,” says Oberwörder. Around 8,000 of the 18,000 employees work in Germany.
Oberwörder wants to “further advance the expansion of electromobility”. Depending on the segment, he has different schedules: “From 2030, we will only offer electric buses in the city.” Because of the high battery costs, electric vehicles still have a higher selling price than combustion engines. “Because of the high fuel prices, city electric buses have long been on a par with diesel buses when viewed over their life cycle,” says Oberwörder.
Daimler is currently opening up the intercity bus segment with electric buses - later than competitors Iveco or the Chinese. The new Stromer eIntouro, which can travel up to 500 kilometers on a single battery charge, is scheduled to be delivered for the first time this month. Oberwörder does not want to bring electric coaches onto the market until 2030.
This is also due to demand: According to Dataforce, 57 percent of new buses in city transport in the first half of 2026 were electric. For intercity buses it is 17 percent, for coaches it is less than two percent.
This can be explained by the charging infrastructure: In the city, buses don't drive so many kilometers on fixed routes, and there are charging stations in almost every transport company depot.
For longer distances, however, charging points are necessary and expansion is stalling. The commercial vehicle industry is calling for 35,000 public fast charging stations by 2030. There are currently fewer than 2,000. From Oberwörder's point of view, an additional 14,000 stations are needed for buses because customers drive to tourist destinations away from the motorway axes. From Oberwörder's perspective, the expansion is three years behind schedule.
The pressure to adapt is high: for intercity buses and coaches, as for trucks, the European Union requires around 35 percent of new registrations to be electric by 2030. The goal is considered unattainable.
In view of the severe penalties, Oberwörder is calling for a postponement to 2033. "We support ambitious climate goals. But you have to question them if they cannot be achieved due to a lack of infrastructure." Because the necessary infrastructure is missing, customers cannot use the vehicles economically.
The manufacturer has expanded its business due to a lack of charging stations. “We convert depots for our customers from diesel to electric on a turnkey basis,” says Oberwörder. The manufacturer also processes old batteries and offers battery replacement so that older buses can run with the new generation of batteries. In order to send a signal to politicians, we are also investing in public charging parks outside of cities, says Oberwörder. “But we can’t expand the entire network, that’s someone else’s job.”
Daimler Buses sold almost 16,500 buses in the first nine months - 16 percent fewer than in the same period last year. The group explains this with the weak market in Latin America as a result of high inflation. The brand generates almost 80 percent of its revenues in Europe.
When the bus business almost came to a standstill during the corona pandemic, Oberwörder made the division “more resilient” with a savings program, as he says. Today, the bus division is Daimler Truck's most profitable division with a return on sales of 9.2 percent. “We have high-quality products with which we achieve good pricing,” says Oberwörder.
Daimler Buses benefits from synergies with the truck business. The engines have to be adapted for use in buses because of the constant starting and braking, but in principle it is the same unit.
