Ballymena-based coach builders Wrightbus has won a contract to supply over 800 buses to transport company FirstGroup as part of an £125 million (€155.3 million) deal announced today.
The first of the new vehicles is due to be delivered this year and the full order is due to be delivered within approximately five years.
Although Wrightbus declined to reveal the number of buses to be built, the total is understood to be between 800 and 850 vehicles.
The order is the largest in the family owned company's history, according to managing director Mark Nodder.
"We are pleased to be FirstGroup's partner of choice and this is an excellent endorsement of Wrightbus as a designer and manufacturer of a range of vehicles that incorporate innovative and advanced technology for both drivers and passengers," he said.
FirstGroup is one of the world's largest transport companies with revenues of over £5 billion per annum.
The company operates nearly 9.000 buses in the UK and has a contract for one fifth of all local bus services there.
The order includes five new Wrightbus double-decker hybrid buses. These are part of the company's development of buses that use a combination of diesel and electric power to minimise pollution.
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