Canada / Germany – The Canadian Vancouver-based manufacturer of mid-sized multi-purpose transit vehicles, Grande West Transportation Group Inc has now entered the electric bus market with the launch of the Vicinity LT EV. To launch its inaugural electric mid-sized transit bus for the markets of Canada and USA, in November 2020 it said it had engaged the engineering services of three German companies, LION Smart GmbH* of Garching, BMW Technologies & Mobility (part of the BMW Group) in Munich, and hofer powertrain** of Nürtingen, to realise its electric vehicle (EV) solution.

Grande West said LION Smart engineering services included development and integration of the power management system involving software, mechanical and electrical adaptation, battery management and the integration of 400V BMW battery packs into the Vicinity LT EV. The BMW high voltage batteries developed for the BMW i3 will be used for the Vicinity LT EV. The BMW i batteries are a proven EV solution in many applications other than just the i3 passenger car, with over 100,000 BMW i3 battery packs sold worldwide.