Daimler Trucks Invests in Electric Bus Company

Daimler AG’s Trucks & Buses unit is making an unspecified investment in Proterra Inc., a Burlingame, Calif.-based maker of electric buses, and plans to partner with the company on future projects.

The investment is part of Proterra’s $155 million funding round, which was co-led by Daimler and San Francisco-based Tao Capital Partners. BMW invested in Proterra last year.

As part of the new funding, Proterra and Daimler have agreed to explore ways to electrify Daimler heavy-duty vehicles. The first project will evaluate the use of Proterra’s battery and electric drivetrain technologies in school buses made by Daimler’s Thomas Built Buses division.

School buses are well-suited for electrification because they typically travel along short fixed routes and return to a central hub at the end of the day, the partners note.

Proterra was founded in 2004. The company, which claims 60% of the North American market for large electric buses, has sold nearly 700 such vehicles to 90 customers in the U.S. and Canada.

Daimler offers several all-electric commercial vehicles. Among them are the Fuso eCanter medium-duty delivery truck and new Mercedes-Benz eCitaro city bus and eActros heavy-duty truck.