Montréal and Laval award Canada's largest ever battery-electric bus contract to New Flyer

WINNIPEG, Aug. 24, 2018 /CNW/ - (TSX: NFI) New Flyer Canada ULC ("New Flyer"), the Canadian subsidiary of NFI Group Inc. ("NFI"), the largest transit bus and motor coach manufacturer and parts distributor in North America, today announced that the Société de transport de Montréal ("STM") and the Société de transport de Laval ("STL") have awarded New Flyer a contract for 40 forty-foot, zero-emission, battery-electric Xcelsior CHARGE™ heavy-duty transit buses. New Flyer bid successfully against two competitors, confirming its position as now serving all 25 of the largest transit agencies in North America.

The notice to proceed for the pilot bus is expected October 31, 2018, and the notice to proceed for the production buses is expected following the nine month review of the pilot bus.

The new order, supported by funding from provincial and federal governments, includes 10 buses for STL and 30 buses for STM, together making it the largest ever Canadian battery-electric bus procurement to date. The purchase furthers efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by exploring unique electric mobility solutions to create more livable cities. Currently, both agencies operate battery-electric bus pilot programs, and intend to be fully electric in future with STL and STM committing to buy only electric buses as of 2023 and 2025, respectively.

The buses will use depot-based charging to slow-charge the buses, with 466kWh batteries on board.

"New Flyer is proud to deliver on Canada's largest battery-electric, zero-emission bus procurement, bringing electric mobility to the communities of Laval and Montréal," said Jennifer McNeill, Vice President, Sales and Business Development. "We remain committed to creating more livable cities through engineering smarter and more efficient buses, and working collaboratively with industry leaders such as STL and STM to deliver connected, zero-emission public transit solutions."

With the announcement, Laval and Montréal join the likes of Toronto, Vancouver, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, New York, Portland, Palm Springs, and other cities across North America operating New Flyer's zero-emission, battery-electric Xcelsior CHARGE™ buses.

STM provides public transportation in Montréal, Québec, via bus, taxibus, paratransit, and subway services, delivering over 260 million passenger rides per year. It is the second most heavily used urban mass transit system in Canada and the third most heavily used rapid transit system in North America. STL provides public transportation via bus and paratransit services in the community of Laval, Québec, delivering over 20 million passenger rides per year.

NFI has over 85 years of leading innovation and bus manufacturing in Canada, and is focused on advancing vehicle innovation through development of intellectual property and removal of barriers to adopting zero-emission vehicles and autonomous driving technologies. With over 50 years' experience manufacturing zero-emission buses, it has more electric buses on the road in North America than any other manufacturer, and is the only manufacturer providing all three zero-emission bus propulsions (battery-electric, fuel cell-electric, and trolley-electric).

In 2017, New Flyer opened the Vehicle Innovation Center, the first and only innovation lab of its kind dedicated to advancing bus and coach technology, and in 2018, New Flyer became the first bus manufacturer in the world to sign on to the Shared Mobility Principles for Livable Cities. It is the only provider of full suite bus solutions in North America, offering transit buses, motor coaches, and low-floor cutaway buses.

About NFI Group

With nearly 6,000 team members, operating from 31 facilities across Canada and the United States, NFI is North America's largest bus manufacturer providing a comprehensive suite of mass transportation solutions under several brands: New Flyer^® (heavy-duty transit buses), ARBOC^® (low-floor cutaway and medium-duty buses), MCI^® (motor coaches), and NFI Parts™ (parts, support, and service). NFI buses incorporate the widest range of drive systems available including: clean diesel, natural gas, diesel-electric hybrid, and zero-emission electric (trolley, battery, and fuel cell). For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2017, NFI posted revenues of US $2.4 billion. NFI common shares are traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol NFI. News and information are available at www.nfigroup.com.

About New Flyer

New Flyer is North America's heavy-duty transit bus leader and offers the most advanced product line under the Xcelsior^® and Xcelsior CHARGE™ brands. New Flyer actively supports over 44,000 heavy-duty transit buses (New Flyer, NABI, and Orion) currently in service, of which 7,300 are powered by electric motors and battery propulsion and 1,600 are zero-emission. Further information is available at www.newflyer.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release may contain forward-looking statements relating to expected future events and financial and operating results of NFI Group that involve risks and uncertainties. Although the forward-looking statements contained in this press release are based upon what management believes to be reasonable assumptions, investors cannot be assured that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements, and the differences may be material. Actual results may differ materially from management expectations as projected in such forward-looking statements for a variety of reasons, including market and general economic conditions and economic conditions of and funding availability for customers to purchase buses and to purchase parts or services, customers may not exercise options to purchase additional buses, the ability of customers to suspend or terminate contracts for convenience and the other risks and uncertainties discussed in the materials filed with the Canadian securities regulatory authorities and available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Due to the potential impact of these factors, the NFI Group disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless required by applicable law.      

SOURCE New Flyer Industries Inc.