CITY OF INDUSTRY, CA—Proterra has begun assembling battery packs inside its factory here that produces electric buses. Batteries manufactured at the facility will feature Proterra’s redesigned modules with next-generation cells developed with LG Energy Solution.
“The new battery packs will improve on [our] industry-leading energy systems with greater energy storage capacity and higher power density to enable increased range and faster charge times,” says Jack Allen, CEO of Proterra. “The colocated battery line is designed to optimize space and demonstrates [our] ability to bring state-of-the-art battery production directly to commercial vehicle OEMs.
“[Our] new Proterra ZX5 can now be equipped with 675-kilowatts of energy, the most energy storage of any 40-foot electric bus available in the market today,” claims Allen.
“[Our] technology advancements enable efficient production in a small footprint and [our] transit bus business benefits from colocation of battery production,” adds Allen. “[The assembly] line was established within a year and showcases [our] ability to design and deploy a modular and capital efficient manufacturing process for optimal electric vehicle manufacturing.”
In addition to its transit bus business, Proterra provides EV technology and expertise to other medium- and heavy-duty commercial vehicle manufacturers. Customers include companies such as Freightliner Custom Chassis Corp. and Thomas Built Buses Inc., which produce electric delivery vans and school buses, respectively.
