State Governor Jay Inslee applauds Canadian company for supporting fleet operators' decarbonization initiatives alongside economic diversification and job growth in the region
FERNDALE, WA / ACCESSWIRE / September 12, 2023 / Vicinity Motor Corp. (VMC), a trusted North American supplier of commercial electric vehicles (EVs), today hosted the grand opening ceremony of its 100,000-square-foot campus in Ferndale, Washington.
With an annual assembly capacity of up to 850 low- and zero-emission buses and 6,250 Class 3 all-electric trucks, the state-of-the-art facility will immediately start cutting into VMC's order backlog of more than $150 million, which includes recent deals with Lafarge Canada, Transdev and Pioneer Auto Group.
"Strong demand for our newest EV, the VMC 1200 electric commercial truck, is being driven by municipal, landscaping, transportation, shipping and logistics leaders that are seeking to reduce costs and carbon emissions while running more efficient fleets," said VMC Chief Executive Officer Will Trainer. "With light- and medium-duty EV inventories across North America projected to top one million by 2030 and six million by 2040, I'm excited to see our business firing on all cylinders, and am immensely proud of the work our team has put into designing and building a world-class manufacturing facility."
In addition to assembly and upfitting, the Ferndale campus will be used to conduct pre-delivery inspections, research and development, and general technical and servicing work. Current VMC models that can be assembled at the Ferndale campus include:
- VMC 1200: Powered by cutting-edge Li-Ion battery technology that provides approximately 100 kWh of power, this ultra-quiet Class 3 electric truck can travel up to 150 miles/240 kilometers fully loaded on a single charge.
- Vicinity Classic and Lightning: Running on electric, compressed natural gas (CNG), or clean-diesel powertrains, these mid-size buses are proving popular among transit operators seeking reliability at significantly lower price points than rival offerings, and superior durability than is offered by cut-away buses built on truck chassis.
While speaking at the grand opening, Washington Governor Jay Inslee applauded VMC for helping to diversify the state economy, supporting fleet operators' decarbonization initiatives, and providing new employment opportunities for families in the region. "Here in Washington, we're working on electrifying everything from ferries and trains to automobiles and buses," said Inslee. "Companies like Vicinity are making it possible for us to decarbonize the transportation sector and defeat the climate crisis, all while creating family-wage jobs for Washingtonians."
Less than 20 miles south of VMC's headquarters in Aldergrove, B.C., the campus will also improve access to nearby port, rail and truck shipping and receiving infrastructure. After being awarded a $300,000 economic development strategic reserve fund (SRF) grant to support VMC, the Port of Bellingham's Port Commission President Michael Shepard said: "Vicinity Motors is a terrific addition to Whatcom County's growing clean-tech economy. There is tremendous demand for electric buses in the United States and the sky is the limit for Vicinity. The Port is proud to be able to help another Canadian company expand into the US market while creating family-wage jobs for Whatcom County residents and accelerating the transition to a sustainable public transit system."
To support the immediate ramp up of operations at Ferndale, VMC recently supplemented a $30-million credit facility with the Royal Bank of Canada and Export Development Canada (EDC) with a further $9-million working capital credit facility with EDC.
"By completing key hires and fully funding our new operations with non-dilutive debt financing, we're in a prime position to scale quickly and accelerate our sales push across North America," said John LaGourgue, VMC's Vice President of Corporate Development. "It's a huge and fast-growing market, and we're ready to help our customers hit their near- and long-term sustainability targets with best-in-class products, while striving to deliver strong and enduring value to our shareholders."
About Vicinity Motor Corp.
Vicinity Motor Corp. (NASDAQ:VEV)(TSXV:VMC) ("VMC") is a North American supplier of electric vehicles for both public and commercial enterprise use. The Company leverages a dealer network and close relationships with world-class manufacturing partners to supply its flagship electric, CNG and clean-diesel Vicinity buses, as well as the VMC 1200 electric truck to the transit and industrial markets. For more information, please visit www.vicinitymotorcorp.com.
Company Contact:
John LaGourgue
VP Corporate Development
604-288-8043
[email protected]
Investor Relations Contact:
Lucas Zimmerman
MZ Group - MZ North America
949-259-4987
[email protected]
www.mzgroup.us
Neither the TSX-V nor its Regulation Service Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX-V) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release includes certain "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" (collectively "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable securities laws. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are frequently, but not always, identified by words such as "expects", "anticipates", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "potential", "possible", and similar expressions, or statements that events, conditions, or results "will", "may", "could", or "should" occur or be achieved. Forward-looking statements involve various risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements.
Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from Vicinity's expectations include uncertainties relating to the economic conditions in the markets in which Vicinity operates, vehicle sales volume, anticipated future sales growth, the success of Vicinity's operational strategies, the timing of the completion of the vehicle assembly facility in the State of Washington, the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic, related government-imposed restrictions on operations, the success of Vicinity's strategic partnerships; and other risk and uncertainties disclosed in Vicinity's reports and documents filed with applicable securities regulatory authorities from time to time. Vicinity's forward-looking statements reflect the beliefs, opinions and projections on the date the statements are made. Vicinity assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements or beliefs, opinions, projections, or other factors, should they change, except as required by law.
SOURCE: Vicinity Motor Corp.