Electric bus and light commercial vehicle company Switch Mobility Ltd. announced its entry into continental Europe with a new state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Valladolid, Spain.

President Dheeraj Hinduja laid the foundation for the next unit.

“We have established a presence in the UK, India and now in mainland Europe. We have an order book of over 500 electric buses and have traveled over 50 million kilometers with our current electric products. Beginning development of our site in Spain is a key step in our global growth strategy,” Andy Palmer, Vice President and CEO, said in a statement.

Construction on the 35-acre site is expected to begin shortly with the first fleet of buses expected to be produced within 12 months.

The new factory will include two state-of-the-art production lines and will be completely carbon neutral from the start. The company has planned an investment of 100 million euros for the site over the next decade and is expected to create 7,000 direct and indirect jobs in the region.

The first phase of the new development will see the production of Switch’s new 12m bus designed for the European market. Phases two and three will add battery assembly capabilities and production of Switch’s zero-carbon light commercial vehicles from 2024.