Proactive Investors - Lion Electric (TSX:LEV) Company shares surged 19% to $3.13 on Tuesday, following a 12% rise on Monday. The all-electric vehicle manufacturer's momentum comes after officially unveiling its Mirabel, Quebec, factory, which is set to produce lithium-ion batteries for medium and heavy-duty vehicles.
Lion Electric said production of the first battery pack was completed at the end of 2022 following the completion of the installation of the initial portion of the battery assembly line at the 175,000-square-foot facility.
The company added that final certification of the first battery pack model is expected in the first half of 2023, followed by a gradual production ramp-up in 2023.
As well, Lion noted the new facility is targeted to reach an annual production capacity of 1.7 gigawatt-hours by the end of the year while ramping up to 5 gigawatt-hours at full scale, would which enable the company to electrify about 14,000 medium and heavy-duty vehicles per year, depending on the vehicle mix.
It added that the first Lion batteries will serve to power the LionC and LionD school buses and the Lion5 trucks.
Lion expects to have the ability to manufacture 22,500 electric buses and trucks per year once the Quebec and Illinois factories are at full capacity, according to the company.