BYD, producer of pure electric buses, is joining forces with British bus builder Alexander Dennis Limited (ADL) in a bid to transform the transport landscape in the U.K., and elsewhere, with the introduction of emission-free buses.

A joint venture agreement was signed Oct. 21 on the occasion of the State visit to the U.K. by President Xi Jinping of China. It envisions an initial contract between the two to build 200, 40-foot single-deck buses per year, representing turnover of around $1.01 billion over the next 10 years.

Both companies confirmed that they are already in advanced discussions with a view to extending their alliance to include double-deck buses, a sector in which ADL is a renowned world leader. When this happens there is potential to triple the scale of the current deal to almost $3.08 billion.

The BYD-ADL collaboration deal was signed by Wang Chuan-fu, Founding Chairman of BYD, and Colin Robertson, Chief Executive of ADL, with both men confirming that their ultimate objective is to transform global transport systems to pure electric, emission-free buses.