Lion Electric, a Canadian based manufacturer of all-electric medium and heavy-duty urban vehicles, is planning to build the company's first-ever U.S. manufacturing facility and the largest plant of its kind in the country in Joliet, Illinois.
RE Journals reported that a minimum of $70 million will be invested to build the new facility which will produce medium and heavy-duty electric vehicles in the U.S. The facility is expected to go online in the second half of 2022 and will have an annual production capacity of 20,000 zero-emission vehicles a year and will create at least 745 jobs for Illinoisans.
The new 900,000 square foot facility will be the company's largest dedicated production site in the U.S. There is an increasing demand in the marketplace for "Made in America" zero-emission vehicles. This will help bring Illinois closer to its own clean energy goals with plans to increase adoption of EV's in the state to one million by 2030.
According to Mass Transit, the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) worked with the Intersect Illinois to put together a site selection process that involved both virtual and in-person site visits, economic analysis and coordination with local officials and utilities to develop a comprehensive proposal for Lion Electric.
The company has qualified for the state's EDGE incentive program which is a tool to support companies making large-scale capital investments that lead to significant job creation. The company is working with local officials to apply for additional local incentives.
"Lion's historic investment to bring its largest production facility to Illinois represents not only a win for our communities, but a strong step forward in our work to expand clean energy alternatives and the jobs they bring to our communities. The new Joliet facility will put Illinois at the forefront of a national movement to transition to zero-emission vehicle use, advancing our own goals of putting one million of these cars on the road by 2030. In Illinois, we know that a clean energy economy is about more than just vehicles - it's about healthier communities and jobs for those who live there. We are excited to welcome Lion to the Land of Lincoln and look forward to their future success here."
Illinois Governor | JB Pritzker
PR Newswire states that the Will County region has a rich history of manufacturing, and Lion plans to build a robust local supply chain within the area. The Joliet location also offers Lion a geographically centralized base of manufacturing and operations, with access to key infrastructure and distribution channels.
"This significant expansion into the U.S. market will not only allow us to drastically increase our overall manufacturing capacity of electric trucks and buses but to also better serve our customers, while adding critical clean manufacturing jobs that will form the backbone of the green economy."
CEO and Founder of Lion Electric | Marc Bedard
Over the last decade, Lion has established itself as a leader in the zero-emission heavy-duty vehicle industry and has delivered over 390 all-electric heavy-duty vehicles in North America with over 7 million miles driven since 2016. All of Lion's vehicles are purpose-built for electric propulsion from the ground up, assembled in North America and distributed and serviced through the Company's network of Experience Centers in California, New York, Washington, Florida and Arizona.