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SWITCH Mobility To Trial New E-Buses In UAE & Saudi Arabia In 2025
The SWITCH EiV12 and E1 offer cutting-edge features, cater to both the public and private sectors, and align with GCC sustainability goals.
SWITCH Mobility, a leading player in the commercial EV sector, has announced plans to conduct trial runs of its cutting-edge electric buses in the UAE and Saudi Arabia during the summer of 2025. If all goes to plan, the company aims to roll out the vehicles commercially across the wider Gulf region by the fourth quarter of the same year.
Speaking at a launch event in India where two new e-bus models — the SWITCH EiV12 and SWITCH E1 — were unveiled, SWITCH Mobility Chairman Dheeraj Hinduja shared the company’s growing interest in the GCC markets.
“The launch of the [buses] is a proud milestone for the Hinduja Group and Ashok Leyland, underscoring our commitment to sustainable mobility […] At SWITCH Mobility, we are driving a greener future and advancing our long-term vision to democratize electric mobility worldwide,” Hinduja explained.
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According to the SWITCH chairman, the EiV12 is likely to appeal to private companies, while the SWITCH E1, designed for the European market, is meant for the public sector. The company also plans to eventually manufacture buses at Ashok Leyland’s Ras Al Khaimah facility once demand reaches sufficient levels.
SWITCH E-Bus Models
- SWITCH EiV12: This model is India’s first low-floor city bus equipped with chassis-mounted batteries. It offers a scalable battery capacity exceeding 400 kWh and can accommodate up to 39 passengers. Powered by SWITCH iON, the company’s proprietary telematics system, the EiV12 ensures efficient fleet management with features like real-time vehicle health monitoring. Its rear-end charging interface allows quick recharges while optimizing depot space. Interiors are spacious, well-lit, and provide excellent visibility thanks to a large panoramic glass area.
- SWITCH E1: Engineered in the UK for European markets, the SWITCH E1 boasts a triple-door layout (front, center, and rear) and a flat gangway, making it highly accessible. With a capacity to carry up to 93 passengers, the bus is powered by in-wheel motors and sets a new standard for sustainable public transport in urban areas.
SWITCH Mobility has revealed that both models have already attracted significant global attention, with the company having received 1,800 orders to date.
News
Visa’s Return To Syria Starts With A Test And A Bank In Lebanon
Foreign visitors will be the first users to benefit, but whether Syria’s own banks and cardholders follow is still an open question.
Visa is returning to Syria. Its first live international card transaction in the country was a test rather than a launch, and the milestone event ran through a Lebanese bank.
The acquirer (the bank on the merchant’s side of a card payment) was Fransabank Lebanon, with Paymera as the other named partner. Nadim Moujaes, who heads a Fransabank Group subsidiary, describes the test as both the culmination of “longstanding efforts to link Syria back to international payment networks” and “the first step in a larger path”.
Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa makes the first electronic payment in Syria using a @Visa card at a store in Damascus, following the lifting of US sanctions on Syria. pic.twitter.com/lpAN7nQ6Fc
— Tech Magazine (@TechMGZN) August 27, 2026
“We are excited to have successfully tested live transactions today as we plan to enable international visitors to use their Visa cards while in Syria,” says Leila Serhan, Visa’s senior vice president and group country manager for the North Africa, Levant and Pakistan region. Although a significant first step, that plan doesn’t come with a hard date for when a visitor’s card will work normally.
Mohammed Safwat Raslan, governor of the Central Bank of Syria, says the test paves the way for international card acceptance in Syria and that maintaining strong compliance, risk management and operational controls will remain essential. Serhan likewise stresses that Visa has worked within applicable legal, regulatory and compliance requirements. For a test transaction, it seems there was a great deal of attention paid to the rules, with the entire operation being carefully managed.
Also Read: Lebanon’s 5G Era Begins With 150 Stations And A $1M Budget
The test is the latest step in a sequence that began in December 2025, when Visa announced a strategic roadmap to support Syria’s integration into the global digital economy. In February 2026 it hosted its first industry gathering of banks, ecosystem partners and policymakers in Damascus and, the same month, signed an agreement with Syria’s Ministry of Communications and Information Technology in San Francisco.
Michel Kattouah, Paymera’s CEO, called the test “the return of international card acceptance,” but while that’s positive news, there’s no word yet on when a Syrian bank will issue a Visa card to a Syrian customer.
Visa’s Return To Syria Starts With A Test And A Bank In Lebanon
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