Contracts worth nearly QR6bn were signed Monday in the presence of HE the Prime Minister and Interior Minister Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa bin Abdulaziz al-Thani to implement the transformation to environment-friendly vehicles.
The contracts included those to purchase buses for the 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar, as well as the services to operate them and their facilities, establish an electric bus (e-bus) assembly plant, and for the bus infrastructure that support the private sector.









The agreements are within the framework of implementing the electric vehicle strategy prepared by the Ministry of Transport and Communications in co-operation with the authorities concerned.
The contracts were signed by the Qatar Free Zones Authority (QFZA), the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy (SC), the Public Works Authority (Ashghal), Karwa Transportation Company, Chinese companies Yutong and Higer and a number of private sector companies working in the field of contracting and construction.
E-buses and those running on environment-friendly diesel that is free of sulfur which causes harmful emissions from the combustion process will be provided and the infrastructure for them established, such as stations, warehouses and parking lots. Additionally, a factory to assemble e-buses will be set up in a free zone.
QFZA signed a multilateral framework agreement with Yutong, one of the world's largest bus and coach suppliers, and Mowasalat, the major transport services provider in Qatar.
The deal will see e-buses manufactured in the zones with the first vehicles produced for the 2022 FIFA World Cup and beyond. The deal is part of a wider Qatari initiative to ensure 25% of the public bus network is powered by electricity in time for the tournament, with the entire public fleet system expected to be e-powered by 2030.
In a statement issued on sidelines of the ceremony, HE the Minister of Transport and Communications Jassim Seif Ahmed al-Sulaiti described the contracts as a key part of Qatar's public transportation plan 2030.
“Such steps would enhance Qatar's ranking as a pioneer in clean energy mass transit, becoming one of the very first countries in the world having an integrated electric bus system, in addition to boosting the potential value of the legacy of the 2022 FIFA World Cup 2022 bus system for creating a positive legacy.
“That clearly demonstrates Qatar is committed to deploying global clean energy solutions on transportation and determined to host an exceptional, eco-friendly, carbon-neutral championship,” he noted.
"Signing contracts with pioneering private sector companies to establish essential electric vehicle infrastructure emphasises the ministry's unwavering attention to the State directives, thus boosting the localisation of expertise and the technology in use," the Minister noted.
Welcoming the signing, HE the Minister of State and QFZA chairman Ahmad bin Mohammed al-Sayed said that besides helping to anchor an electric vehicle auto cluster, the project will provide opportunities to local businesses through the localisation of contractors, service providers and suppliers.
The SC secretary general Hassan al-Thawadi said the gradual and full transformation to an electric bus system is a significant development with regards to transportation strategies for the 2022 FIFA World Cup as the SC endeavours to provide sustainable, economical, eco-friendly transit solutions during the championship.