MONTREAL — Keolis Canada has placed an order for 12 LionC school buses from The Lion Electric Co., the operator announced on Thursday.

By placing this order, Keolis Canada becomes the largest operator of electric Type C school buses in North America, according to a news release from The Lion Electric Co. and Keolis Canada.

In 2016, the Canadian operator had bought two LionC electric school buses from the electric school bus manufacturer.

The operator’s 14 total buses will run on Montreal's North Shore starting in 2019, busing 770 students of the Scolaire des Affluents School Board, and traveling 448,000 kilometers annually.

LionC electric buses are assembled in Saint-Jérôme, Quebec.

"We are very excited to be able to transport the new generation of Quebecers of the Lanaudière region  with  these  electric  school  buses,” said Patrick Gilloux, president and chief operating officer of Keolis Canada.

"We are very pleased to be taking part in Keolis Canada's commitment to sustainable mobility,” added Marc Bedard, president and founder of Lion Electric Co.

In other recent news, The Lion Electric Co. delivered 13 electric school buses to Ontario operators as part of a pilot for the province’s government.