Varley Electric Vehicles is a division of The Varley Group, one of Australia’s oldest specialty vehicle manufacturers and has recently celebrated 125 years of service. Varley’s products cater to a broad range of clients, including the Queensland Police Service and the Commonwealth of Australia.

Electric vehicle technology is the way of the future and Varley has committed serious funding to improve its capabilities in this space. Instant Charge Electric Bus is Varley’s first demonstration of our enhanced capabilities for electric buses and people movers. With this technology we’re excited to broaden our clientele and offer new products to our existing repeat customers.

—Varley Electric Vehicles Division Manager, John Bettini

With an expected range of 100 kilometers (62 miles) per full charge, the bus will operate in a Council bus route.

Instant Charge Electric Bus will run solely on batteries recharged by the electricity grid and will be distinctive in its ability to recharge its onboard battery to up to 80% capacity in less than 10 minutes using a buffered system that will have no direct impact on the electricity grid. The bus will be recharged with 100% renewable electricity.

Varley’s electric bus development program, which has already commenced, is due to trial the first Instant Charge Electric Bus with the Brisbane City Council this year.

Instant Charge Electric Bus is the recipient of a Queensland State Government Business and Industry Transformation Incentive (BITI) Grant and its development is supported by electric vehicle experts, Verdant Vision, Tritium, and Ultramotive Technologies.

Andrew Simpson, Managing Director of Verdant Vision, a Brisbane-based company that provides electric vehicle readiness, deployment and evaluation services is project managing the delivery of Instant Charge Electric Bus and providing technical expertise to the program.