JOLIET, IL—Lion Electric, a Canadian manufacturer of electric trucks and buses, is investing $70 million to build a new assembly plant here that will be able to produce 20,000 vehicles annually.

The 900,000 square-foot factory is expected to begin production in the second half of 2022 and employ some 745 people.

“Lion is the leader in electric school buses and has always been dedicated to the U.S. market, and our commitment to be close to our customers is one of the core values,” says Marc Bedard, founder and CEO of Lion Electric. “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.”

Lion Electric has so far delivered more than 390 all-electric heavy-duty vehicles in North America, which have collectively run more than 7 million miles.