SOUTH
CHARLESTON, W.Va., Oct. 28,
2024 /CNW/ -- GreenPower Motor Company
Inc. (NASDAQ: GP) (TSXV: GPV) ("GreenPower"), a leading
manufacturer and distributor of all-electric, purpose-built,
zero-emission medium and heavy-duty vehicles serving the cargo and
delivery market, shuttle and transit space and school bus sector,
today announced that it has finalized the particulars for the order
for 50 all-electric Type D BEAST and Mega BEAST and Type
A Nano BEAST and Nano BEAST Access school buses for seven
county school districts in West
Virginia funded by the EPA Clean School Bus Program. The
order is through GreenPower's West
Virginia dealer.
"EPA has previously awarded $18.5
million to purchase 50 GreenPower all-electric school buses
and provide for the charging infrastructure associated with these
purpose-built EVs," said GreenPower President Brendan Riley. He noted the increase from the
original 47 school buses announced by the EPA in January to the 50
school buses in the order is because Monongalia County School District is required
to pay an additional $550,000 from
its own school bus replenishment funds since the county is defined
as non-priority by EPA.
"This electrification project is the type of activity Congress
envisioned when it created the Clean School Bus Program in the
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law," Riley continued. "It is a
collaborative effort between seven West
Virginia school districts, GreenPower, GreenPower's
statewide school bus dealer and an infrastructure provider to
replace outdated, dirty diesel buses with a safe, sustainable and
sensible clean alternative to get kids to and from school and
extracurricular activities in a healthier environment."
Development of the grant funded by EPA was a multi-step process
designed to ensure the effective use of federal funds in deploying
the most zero-emission school buses possible while creating a
charging corridor throughout the state which allows for the
all-electric school buses to operate both on local routes and
longer distances.
"As the statewide dealer, we partnered with GreenPower as the
OEM to first meet individually with each school district to gauge
their interest in participating in the grant process. Each of the
schools had participated in the #YesWV All-Electric School Bus
Pilot Project, so they were familiar with GreenPower's school buses
and knew they were well suited to meet the transportation needs of
their students," said Steve Ellis,
Vice President of Sales for GreenPower's dealer. "The schools then
all came together as a group and jointly decided how to proceed
with the application process."
GreenPower collaborated with its Dealer and Highland Electric
Fleet and they, collectively, made depot visits to each school
district to establish their needs. They then provided guidance on
the charging infrastructure, drafted the application, met with the
school districts' Boards of Education for approval, and submitted
the grant application to the EPA.
The 50 GreenPower buses will be distributed as follows:
- Cabell County School District
– 6 BEASTs
- Calhoun County School District
– 3 BEASTs and 1 Nano BEAST
- Clay County School District –
3 BEASTs
- Grant County School District –
3 BEASTs and 2 Nano BEASTs
- Kanawha County School District
– 21 BEASTs
- Lewis County School District –
6 BEASTs
- Monongalia County School
District – 1 Mega BEAST and 4 Nano BEASTs
"GreenPower's all-electric school buses are eligible for rebate
funding under the current round of the federal Clean School Bus
Program and for the California Zero-Emission School Bus and
Infrastructure (ZESBI) program," said Paul
Start, GreenPower's Vice President of Sales – School Bus
Group. "Applications for the $965
million in Clean School Bus Program funding are due by
January 9, 2025 and for the
$500 million ZESBI funding by
November 22, 2024." For assistance
with grant applications, school districts should contact Start at
paul.s@greenpowermotor.com.
GreenPower's BEAST is a purpose-built 40-foot Type D
all-electric, zero-emission school bus with seating for up to 90
students. Designed from the ground up, it is a unified structure
that features a seamlessly integrated aluminum body made from
extruded aluminum manufactured by Constellium on a high strength
steel Truss (bus) chassis. The complete flat floor design allows
for tracking with no obstacles, and the high floors keep students
out of the crash zone. Dual port charging is standard with Level 2
rates up to 19.2 kW and DC Fast Charging rates up to 85 kW.
The Mega BEAST has a class-leading range of up to 300 miles on a
single charge via a 387 kWh battery pack. It provides for the
longest range, has the biggest battery pack in the school bus
market, provides for more uphill climbing power and has the most
desirable V2G capability for a more stable electric grid and
community sustainability in areas where it is deployed.
The School Transportation News award-winning Nano BEAST has a
standard 118 kWh battery pack and a range of up to 140 miles.
Configured for up to 24 passengers, it features a seamlessly
integrated aluminum body made from extruded aluminum manufactured
by Constellium. The dual port charging is standard, with Level 2
rates up to 19.2 kW and DC Fast Charging rates up to 60 kW. The
Nano BEAST Access has seating for up to 18 ambulatory passengers
and up to 3+ Q'STRAINT wheelchair securements, complemented with a
BraunAbility rear curbside lift.
Contacts:
Brendan
Riley, President
brendan@greenpowermotor.com
Paul Start, Vice President of
Sales – School Bus Group
paul.s@greenpowermotor.com
Fraser Atkinson, CEO
fraser@greenpowermotor.com
Mark Nestlen, Vice President of
Business Development & Strategy
mark.n@greenpowermotor.com
About GreenPower Motor Company, Inc.
GreenPower
designs, builds and distributes a full suite of high-floor and
low-floor all-electric medium and heavy-duty vehicles, including
transit buses, school buses, shuttles, cargo vans and a cab and
chassis. GreenPower employs a clean-sheet design to manufacture
all-electric vehicles that are purpose-built to be battery powered
with zero emissions while integrating global suppliers for key
components. This OEM platform allows GreenPower to meet the
specifications of various operators while providing standard parts
for ease of maintenance and accessibility for warranty
requirements. GreenPower was founded in Vancouver, Canada with primary operational
facilities in southern California.
Listed on the Toronto exchange
since November 2015, GreenPower
completed its U.S. IPO and NASDAQ listing in August 2020. For further information go
to www.greenpowermotor.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This document
contains forward-looking statements relating to, among other
things, GreenPower's business and operations and the environment in
which it operates, which are based on GreenPower's operations,
estimates, forecasts and projections. Forward-looking statements
are not based on historical facts, but rather on current
expectations and projections about future events and are therefore
subject to risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results
to differ materially from the future results expressed or implied
by the forward-looking statements including GreenPower's ability to
manufacture the BEAST, Mega BEAST and Nano BEAST school buses
according to the specifications and requirements of the school
districts, and that these school buses will be delivered to and
accepted by the counties; that the Dealer will receive the
$18.5 million in EPA funding for the
BEAST, Mega BEAST and Nano BEAST to pay for the school buses upon
delivery; and that the Monongalia
school district will have $550,000
available from its own school bus replenishment funds to pay for
the school buses upon delivery. These statements generally can be
identified by the use of forward-looking words such as "upon",
"may", "should", "will", "could", "intend", "estimate", "plan",
"anticipate", "expect", "believe" or "continue", or the negative
thereof or similar variations. These statements are not guarantees
of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties that are
difficult to predict. A number of important factors including those
set forth in other public filings (filed under the Company's
profile on www.sedar.com and from time to time with the
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on www.sec.gov) could cause
actual outcomes and results to differ materially from those
expressed in these forward-looking statements. Consequently,
readers should not place any undue reliance on such forward-looking
statements. In addition, these forward-looking statements relate to
the date on which they are made. GreenPower disclaims any intention
or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements
whether as a result of new information, future events or
otherwise.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services
Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX
Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or
accuracy of this release. All amounts in U.S. dollars. ©2024
GreenPower Motor Company Inc. All rights reserved.
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