PORTERVILLE, Calif. — Six school districts in California have committed to buying a total of 11 GreenPower electric school buses, the manufacturer announced on Monday.

Since June, GreenPower has been conducting a demonstration tour with its dealer School Bus Sales of California (an Adomani-owned company) of its Synapse 72 all-electric Type D school bus for school districts and charter schools in California. The districts and schools were selected by the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) and the North Coast Unified Air Quality Management District (NCAQMD) for funding directly tied to the purchases of all-electric school buses.

To date, GreenPower and School Bus Sales of California have secured commitments for 11 Synapse 72 school buses from six school districts in the South Coast and North Coast districts. As part of the approval and purchase process, the districts have advised the South Coast or North Coast of their intention to acquire the Synapse 72 and, where applicable, have asked School Bus Sales of California to apply to reserve funds from the Hybrid and Zero-Emission Truck and Bus Voucher Incentive Project (HVIP) voucher project. A number of these school districts are also evaluating their long-term charging requirements in order to accommodate an even larger fleet of all-electric school buses than their initial secured order, according to GreenPower.

The SCAQMD has currently approved awards for Type C or Type D school buses and the associated charging infrastructure to select school districts. To be eligible for funding, an applicant must receive approval for HVIP funds from the California Air Resources Board (CARB). Including the HVIP voucher amount, the South Coast funds will be used to pay for the balance of the electric school bus up to a total of $368,000, plus another $20,000 for the related charging infrastructure. For the North Coast, the funding for a zero-emission school bus can be up to $400,000, with an additional $5,000 for the related infrastructure.

GreenPower and School Bus Sales of California are waiting for the distribution of grant agreements and completion of the HVIP process in order to move forward with the six school districts' orders, and they expect purchase orders to be completed by September.

GreenPower’s Synapse 72 all-electric Type D school bus has already been approved by CARB for the HVIP voucher, which provides for up to $110,000 for each Synapse 72 sold for use in a disadvantaged community in California.