Bendigo and Adelaide Bank is on a green mission to put more electric buses on the road.
Thanks to a new Bendigo and Adelaide Bank equipment finance loan, two new electric buses are now driving on Melbourne roads.
Melbourne-based bus fleet Donric Group has begun its electric bus trial, with the bank helping to fund two new 2022 Custom Denning zero-emission electric buses. The trial has been designed to help better understand the viability and efficiency of electric buses and inform the Victorian government on the best way it can transition its 4,000 diesel buses in the state’s public fleet to green energy. This includes about 2,200 in regional Victoria with the aim of zero emissions.
Bendigo and Adelaide Bank chief customer office business and agribusiness Adam Rowse (pictured above left) said supporting businesses in their efforts to create a greener and more sustainable future was instrumental in the bank’s purpose of assisting the community.
“Bendigo and Adelaide Bank stands ready to help businesses expand, adapt and future proof their business model,” Rowse said. “It’s incredibly exciting when that support extends to creating a more sustainable and greener future for the next generation.”
Rowse said from supporting businesses such as Donric to purchase electric buses to recently launching an internal electric vehicle pilot, this work fitted with the bank’s longstanding purpose of feeding into the prosperity of the community, not off it.
“We’re here to support our customers and communities to mitigate, adapt and respond to climate change,” he said. “The bank looks forward to supporting more businesses like Donric well into the future.”
Donric Group media release managing director Matthew Baird said the company was grateful for Bendigo and Adelaide Bank’s support with the rollout of their electric bus trial.
“Donric is pleased to be leading the charge (pun intended!) towards a zero-emissions future,” Baird said. “We’re grateful for the support from Bendigo and Adelaide Bank to assist in making this happen.”
This is the latest step in the bank’s EV mission, following a cutting-edge electric vehicle (EV) pilot program which launched in September.
The program was designed to help the bank reach another key milestone in its commitment to reducing its carbon footprint by partnering with SG Fleet. Three members from the bank were sitting behind the wheel of a Nissan Leaf E+, with the pilot helping to inform the bank’s EV strategy on how it could best transition its entire sealed road fleet to EVs.
Bendigo and Adelaide Bank CEO and managing director Marnie Baker (pictured above right) said this milestone formed part of the bank’s Climate Change Action Plan by helping to reduce the bank’s carbon footprint.
“The bank has a long history of supporting communities to be sustainable and thrive,” Baker said. “We are committed to assisting all of our stakeholders with their ambitions to improve environmental outcomes for generations to come.”
Baker added that prosperous communities were not possible unless people considered the impact that decisions they made today would have on the future.
“While programs such as these are small steps in the overall context of the challenges we face, here at Bendigo and Adelaide Bank, we look forward to building on our green credentials,” she said.
“We are committed to reaching our goal to purchase 100% renewable energy by 2025 and reduce absolute emissions by 50% by 2030 and our EV strategy is going to help do just that.”
