Award at Germany’s largest electric bus project with team Jasper/Westen - Heuking Kühn Lüer Wojtek supports ESWE Verkehr in Wiesbaden
Following a complex award procedure, EvoBus GmbH has been awarded the contract for 56 and an optional additional 64 electric buses for ESWE Verkehr in Wiesbaden. EvoBus, a member of Daimler Group, will also be responsible for establishing and availability of the charging infrastructure and the depot management system.
The project is the largest procurement of electric buses in Germany. For Wiesbaden, it represents one of the arguments against driving bans. In its dispute with Deutsche Umwelthilfe e.V. (DUH) about diesel driving bans, the project helped the state capital to reach a settlement agreement: due to the upcoming partial replacement of the diesel bus fleet, DUH is not further pursuing its legal action.
The project is funded by the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety.
Heuking Kühn Lüer Wojtek advised ESWE Verkehr from day one and structured the procedure. “We are proud to be part of this unique and innovative project. What is particular about it is the fact that not only buses are purchased, but for the first time an entire system with contractually guaranteed ranges is being ordered,” said Ute Jasper, who accompanied the procedure together with Laurence Westen.
Eswe-Verkehr General Manager Frank Gäfgen also draws a positive conclusion: “Now we have reached our goal. We fought hard for this lighthouse project and were forced to accept delays to achieve outstanding quality.”
Lord Mayor Sven Gerich is pleased “that the first battery-operated bus will be rolling through our state capital before the end of the year.” “We are the only city in Germany to have managed to avert a diesel driving ban and have even been praised for our clean air plan by Deutsche Umwelthilfe.”
Heuking Kühn Lüer Wojtek’s Public Sector & Public Procurement department has been one of the best procurement law practices for years. Its lawyers are advising on awards, restructuring, large-scale projects, and cooperations in the public sector. They have accompanied several hundred projects of the federal, state, and local authorities with a volume of more than EUR 20 billion without any procedures having been successfully challenged to date.
Dr. Ute Jasper is one of the most renowned lawyers for procurement and infrastructure projects in the public sector. She advises federal and state ministries, municipalities, and their subsidiaries, particularly on innovative and complex projects. Ute Jasper heads the “Public Sector & Public Procurement” department of the large law firm of Heuking Kühn Lüer Wojtek.
Dr. Laurence Westen is a lawyer and Salaried Partner in the “Public Sector & Public Procurement” practice group of the law firm of Heuking Kühn Lüer Wojtek. He designs award procedures for public authorities and ensures legally compliant implementation, particularly relating to the use of subsidies. He is a specialist in state aid law.
