Blue Bird Corp. and Generate Capital, a sustainable investment and operating company, have appointed Chris Baker to general manager of their 50/50 joint venture, Clean Bus Solutions LLC.

Baker will lead Clean Bus Solutions and drive its business growth. The clean energy industry veteran brings more than two decades of general management, sales, and consulting experience to the organization.

Most recently, Baker served as president of Enel Group’s U.S. charging business. Before then, he held senior sales roles at Stem, an AI-driven clean energy solutions and services company, and Bloom Energy, a low carbon energy provider.

Blue Bird and Generate Capital established the fleet electrification-as-a-service business to meet the demand for electric school buses and accelerate the adoption of clean student transportation in North America, according to a news release.

“We are pleased to welcome Chris Baker to lead Clean Bus Solutions,” said Britton Smith, president of Blue Bird Corp and chairman of Clean Bus Solutions LLC. “Chris brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to our fleet electrification-as-a-service joint venture. He is driven and passionate about the electrification of student transportation. Blue Bird customers in North America are poised to benefit greatly from his leadership to avoid the significant upfront costs and complexity of electrifying their school bus fleets.”

The joint venture’s fleet electrification-as-a-service offering will make it simpler for school districts to decarbonize their bus fleets by offering electric school buses and associated charging infrastructure at an affordable monthly fee.

“Chris’s dedication to the infrastructure transition and extensive experience with fleet electrification will help communities clean the air their children breathe and deliver savings to school districts,” said Scott Jacobs, CEO and Co-Founder of Generate Capital. “We look forward to working with Chris to offer affordable and comprehensive fleet-as-a service solutions and accelerate the electrification of school buses across the United States.”

Baker added: “I am delighted to join forces with two of the leaders in clean transportation. School bus electrification is one of the greatest economic and environmental opportunities for school districts and Clean Bus Solutions de-risks the transition process by offering best-in-class buses and smart charging solutions at no upfront cost.”

This turnkey electrification solution will include Blue Bird’s range of electric school buses, financing of both electric vehicles and charging infrastructure, project planning and management as well as fleet and charging optimization.