{"id":299310,"date":"2026-02-24T16:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-02-24T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.electrive.com\/?p=299310"},"modified":"2026-02-24T15:12:49","modified_gmt":"2026-02-24T14:12:49","slug":"el-gobierno-aleman-revisara-los-resultados-de-la-financiacion-de-los-e-bus-antes-de-una-nueva-ronda-de-subvenciones","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.electrive.com\/es\/2026\/02\/24\/german-government-to-review-e-bus-funding-outcomes-ahead-of-fresh-subsidy-round\/","title":{"rendered":"El gobierno alem\u00e1n revisar\u00e1 los resultados de la financiaci\u00f3n del e-bus antes de una nueva ronda de subvenciones"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n

This week, Germany\u2019s bus industry is once again convening in Berlin. Following an initial kick-off conference in 2024, the Federal Ministry of Transport is hosting the second specialist conference on climate-friendly buses, known as BUSKON 2026. The tone of the conference was set this morning by Federal Transport Minister Patrick Schnieder (CDU) in his opening speech.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In his address, Schnieder described battery-electric buses as a cornerstone of climate-friendly local public transport. “With our funding, transport companies are investing in clean, quiet, and innovative technologies. More than 2,200 battery-electric buses supported by our programme are already in operation. […] Around 1,900 additional e-buses will now be added. This demonstrates that the transition is underway\u2014and it brings benefits for passengers and residents, as well as for the climate and the environment.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Schnieder also drew attention to the announcement of a new funding round: “We are currently working at full speed on a new funding guideline and plan to launch a new funding call as early as spring,” the minister stated. “We have significant resources available again in the 2026 budget. These will enable funding at least at the previous level, amounting to up to \u20ac500 million.” His ministry is committed to ‘continuing this success story and achieving our ambitious goals.’ By 2030, the federal government aims to ensure that half of all city buses in operation are battery-electric.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Details about the planned new funding round remain limited. What is clear, however, is that the ‘Guideline for the Promotion of Alternative Drives for Buses in Passenger Transport’, which has been in place since 2021 as the foundation for subsidies, expired at the turn of the year. For the new subsidy round, Schnieder\u2019s ministry requires a new funding guideline\u2014currently under review, as Nikolaus Oberkandler, Head of the Electromobility and Charging Infrastructure Department at the Federal Ministry of Transport, announced at the conference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Oberkandler assured attendees, however, that applicants should not expect major changes: “We have a programme that works, is well received by transport companies, and is well supported by manufacturers. We do not aim to overhaul it. Instead, we want to operate within the existing framework.” Adjustments may be made to price caps and funding rates, however, to ‘broaden the reach of the funding’. In other words, to support more applications with smaller funding amounts. While the 2026 funding call is largely set at up to \u20ac500 million euros, Oberkandler noted that there is no guarantee the programme ‘will continue in this form indefinitely’ due to the strained budget situation.<\/p>\n\n\n

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For now, the message to the assembled transport companies is clear: funding will be available again in 2026\u2014most likely continuing to support battery-electric and fuel cell buses, as well as the necessary charging and refuelling infrastructure, and potentially conversions from diesel to electric powertrains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Federal Ministry of Transport also provided a review of the most recent funding round at BUSKON. This round was initiated by the new black-red coalition government in summer 2025, marking the end of a long hiatus (triggered by the 2023 KTF ruling and the subsequent budget gap). The results: in this final round under the ‘old’ funding guideline, 151 companies received a total of \u20ac417 million. This funding supports the procurement of 1,887 new battery-electric buses. Schnieder personally handed over almost 100 approval notices to representatives of the funded companies that morning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Among the funding recipients who came close to the maximum funding cap of \u20ac15 million per applicant were companies such as Autokraft, DB Regio Bus Mitte, Duisburger Verkehrsgesellschaft, and LOOK Busreisen. These players are procuring around 60 to 70 new vehicles with the funding. At the other end of the spectrum, however, many small operators received funding amounts of less than one million euros for the procurement of just a handful of e-buses. The complete list of all funding recipients is linked at the end of the text.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Interest in this funding call was enormous; it was oversubscribed several times,” Schnieder explained on stage. “Based on the applications we received, we could have easily funded more than 5,000 buses.” In the end, nearly 1,900 units were subsidised.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Overall, the Federal Ministry of Transport has supported the transformation in this sector with around 1.5 billion euros since 2021. As a result, approximately 2,200 battery-electric buses have already been deployed, and around 3,000 units have been ordered, as Oliver Braune, Programme Coordinator for Electromobility and Buses in Department G23 of the Federal Ministry of Transport, detailed in his presentation. The procured buses are expected to have collectively covered 120 million kilometres. Additionally, the funding supported the procurement of around 2,000 charging stations, two hydrogen refuelling stations, and approximately 100 feasibility studies.

Braune also highlighted the following interim conclusions:<\/p>\n\n\n\n