The Lion Electric Company has opened its 900,000 square-foot Joliet, Illinois facility, located about an hour from Chicago. The facility is expected to have a manufacturing capacity of 2,500 all-electric school buses at the end of 2023. At full scale, the plant has an estimated production capacity of 20,000 vehicles per year in a combination of both buses and trucks, which the company estimates should require around 1,400 skilled workers.
“Lion Electric has been a stalwart partner in building Illinois’ nation-leading electric vehicle manufacturing industry—creating a sustainable network of good-paying jobs that support our communities, while also making our state cleaner and greener,” Governor JB Pritzker said.
The official opening included guests touring Lion’s new school bus production line, a truck and bus ride and exploring innovative all-electric bodied-up Lion truck applications that were on display. Argonne National Laboratory and Joliet Junior College, which are partnering with Lion on research programs and workforce training and development, were also present at the celebration. Guests were also treated to an exclusive first look at the LionD, Lion Electric’s Type-D school bus prototype that is expected to officially debut later in 2023.
