Record year for Pelican with revenue up 9.3 per cent
Yorkshire-based Pelican Engineering which handles Yutong buses and coaches in the UK has reported a year-on-year rise in turnover for the year ending 31 March 2021 with growth of 9.3 percent, rising to £43.4million from £39.7million the previous year. The 102 year-old firm also reported a profit increase across the whole business amid the disruption caused by the pandemic.
While sales of coaches suffered from the impact of the pandemic on the travel sector in 2020 as coach tour operators froze fleet investments, this was offset by the continued demand for DAF and MAN trucks as well as a rapid rise in sales of zero-emission electric buses across the UK.
Richard Crump, managing director, Pelican Engineering, says: “Despite some major challenges to the UK and global economy over the last 18 months, as a third-generation family business we are in a strong position to deal with change.
“Fortunately, the momentum from local authorities and bus operators in the UK to move to zero-emission vehicles has continued to gather pace and our partnership to supply the world-leading Yutong vehicles has not been disrupted by the pandemic. We now have 50 electric buses in service nationally with this number rising to 201 by the end of 2021, making us the largest single-deck electric bus supplier in the UK this year.”
Head of Pelican Yutong Bus, Ian Downie adds: “It has been another exciting year for Pelican as the UK’s local authorities and bus operators have turned to our Yutong buses, not only because they have less impact on the environment, but also because they provide a more comfortable passenger experience with no noise or vibration, as well as a long track record of reliability. With COP26 approaching fast, we are expecting this trajectory to continue into 2022 and beyond.”