Spanish company proposes local EV bus production in Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan’s Ambassador to Kingdom of Spain, Farrukh Tursunov, met with UNVI’s CEO, Eloy Pérez, to discuss potential cooperation in the automotive industry and green transportation.

During the meeting, Pérez expressed interest in jointly manufacturing urban, intercity, and tourist buses, as well as minibuses under the UNVI brand, utilizing the company’s advanced technologies. UNVI highlighted the growing demand for buses, driven by an increase in tourist traffic.

A key focus of the discussions was the proposed conversion of decommissioned Mercedes-Benz Conecto buses from Tashkent into electric vehicles. As part of the initiative, UNVI also aims to train specialists to transfer cutting-edge technologies.

The company proposed a phased cooperation project based at the SamAuto plant in Samarkand, ensuring that local conditions and market competitiveness are taken into account.

Update: SamAuto representatives have stated that they are not aware of any plans for cooperation with UNVI and that the matter is not currently under consideration.

Founded in 1992, UNVI is part of the Pérez Rumbao S.A. group and operates manufacturing facilities in Spain and Portugal. The company supplies buses with internal combustion engines and electric motors to the European Union, the United Kingdom, Norway, the United States, Canada, China, Japan, Azerbaijan, and other countries.