Persija Jakarta's Laksana-Hyundai Electric Bus Costs Billions of Rupiah

JAKARTA — A collaboration between local coachbuilder Laksana from Ungaran and South Korean automotive giant Hyundai has yielded results. They have built an official electric bus for football club Persija Jakarta. The bus marks Indonesia’s first electric vehicle for a professional football club. As a specialised operational vehicle, what is the estimated cost of building this electric bus? Laksana Coachbuilder Technical Director Stefan Arman provided an estimate for the 12-metre electric bus. The cost, reaching billions of Rupiah, reflects the complexity of development. Unlike conventional buses, Persija’s electric model features battery components mounted on the cabin roof. Stefan explained that the roof-mounted batteries required structural adjustments by Laksana’s engineering team to ensure safety. ‘Yes, there are reinforcements. The seating layout shows minor adjustments where additional structures are present,’ Stefan said. Typically, football team buses use a 2-2 seating arrangement, but Persija’s electric bus features some rows configured in a 1-1 layout. Regarding Persija Jakarta’s specific requests, Stefan said there were no major challenges as the requests focused on the vehicle’s cosmetic aspects. ‘There were requests, but they were mainly about giving the bus Persija’s distinctive accents both inside and out,’ he added. This project is the third prototype from the Laksana-Hyundai collaboration. Previously, they built two low-floor electric buses for the new capital city (IKN) and one Hyundai VIP bus. Due to Hyundai’s stringent safety standards, Persija’s electric bus underwent extensive testing before delivery. Laksana rented a large area in Tangerang to test the body and chassis durability. ‘We tested the previous bus at a proving ground, renting a large area in Tangerang. The bus was operated for seven days, eight to ten hours daily, subjected to rigorous driving conditions,’ Stefan said. This was necessary as the South Korean principal is highly concerned with safety, especially since it is the first time their chassis has been customised by a local coachbuilder. ‘Hyundai is very safety-conscious, so they wanted to understand the performance thoroughly. After testing, it was deemed safe,’ Stefan added.