Some more details about the next Lion Electric battery manufacturing plant in Quebec
The future facility will be located adjacent to Montreal-Mirabel International Airport on a 1.6 million square foot property, with development planned to begin very soon, in June 2021. The facility is expected to be completed in the second half of 2022, with a planned annual battery production capacity of 5 gigawatt hours, enough to electrify approximately 14,000 of Lion’s medium and heavy-duty zero-emission trucks and buses.
Lion Electric will soon build a battery manufacturing plant in Quebec, Canada. The announcement was made public by the global all-electric bus and truck manufacturer back in March, this year. Now, Lion Electric has unveiled another interesting detail about the project. The location for the battery manufacturing plant and innovation center will be YMX International Aerocity of Mirabel.
The future facility will be located adjacent to Montreal-Mirabel International Airport on a 1.6 million square foot property, with development planned to begin very soon, in June 2021. The chosen location is quite close to Lion Electric’s current Saint-Jérôme manufacturing plant and ensures access to transportation infrastructure such as highways and airport.
Lion electric battery manufacturing plant expected in 2022
Lion’s battery manufacturing plant and innovation center represents an investment of approximately 185 million Canadian dollars. The facility is expected to be completed in the second half of 2022, with a planned annual battery production capacity of 5 gigawatt hours, enough to electrify approximately 14,000 of Lion’s medium and heavy-duty zero-emission trucks and buses. Maintaining ownership of its battery production is a key strategic differentiator for the company and allows Lion increased control of a key part of its product supply chain while simultaneously lowering costs. The factory will be highly automated and is expected to be able to produce one battery module every 11 seconds and a full battery pack every five minutes.
Benefits for the local community
With the completion of the plant, Lion expects to add 135 high-quality direct jobs in Mirabel in the next two years, and up to a total of 250 direct jobs in the longer term as the company continues to expand its operations at the site. The completion of the facility is also projected to create thousands of secondary jobs in the region.
Lion plans to implement leading sustainable development practices in the construction of the facility, with more details around its design to be announced in the future. The company will also continue to promote the use of electric vehicles with its employee base and visitors, offering robust charging infrastructure on site free of charge.
A very important step in Lion’s journey
«The City of Mirabel considers itself privileged to collaborate with a world-class partner like ADM (Aéroports de Montréal, ed) to attract promising projects which will allow us to further develop land for future industry at the airport complex, leveraging public infrastructure investments that are being made», said Patrick Charbonneau, Interim Mayor of the City of Mirabel.
«Breaking ground on this project is a very important step in Lion’s journey, and we are delighted to be doing so in this beautiful landscape in Mirabel today. ADM has been a fantastic partner in providing us with a location that fits all of Lion’s needs, including access to test facilities and key infrastructure, with opportunity for future expansion. The completion of our battery manufacturing plant and innovation center will bring us increased autonomy, allow us to lower costs, and bring hundreds of additional highly skilled jobs to the region», added Marc Bedard, CEO and Founder of Lion Electric.
