The Lion Electric Co., manufacturer of all-electric medium and heavy-duty vehicles (including school buses), has officially inaugurated its new facility in Mirabel, Quebec, which will produce lithium-ion batteries for vehicles assembled in Canada and the United States.

Production of the first battery pack at the plant was completed at the end of 2022. Final certification of that pack is expected during the first half of 2023, followed by a gradual ramp-up. The first Lion batteries will power LionC and LionD school buses and Lion5 trucks.

The new facility is targeted to reach a production capacity of 1.7 gigawatt hours by the end of the year. At full scale, it’s expected to have annual production capacity of 5 gigawatt hours, enabling Lion to electrify about 14,000 medium and heavy-duty vehicles per year.

“I am proud that Lion Electric is increasing its production capacity with a new battery facility in Mirabel, with a $50 million loan from our government, which will create 135 high-paying jobs,” said Francois Legault, Quebec’s premier. “Lion is a great Quebec success story in an ecosystem that is fundamental to the green economy we are building.”

Said Marc Bedard, CEO and founder of Lion Electric: “This official opening celebrates the culmination of several years of efforts that now allow us to control the manufacturing and integration of one of the fundamental companies in the production of electric vehicles and the electrification of transportation – namely the battery.”