New Flyer celebrates Orange County unveiling of 10 new zero-emission fuel cell-electric buses with the debut of America’s Largest Hydrogen Fueling Station

The New Flyer Xcelsior CHARGE H2™ buses expand California’s zero-emission footprint and celebrate a sustainability milestone with fuel cell-electric energy across the state.

St. Cloud, Minnesota, USA – January 31, 2020: (TSX: NFI) New Flyer of America Inc. (“New Flyer”), a subsidiary of NFI Group Inc. (“NFI”), one of the world’s leading independent global bus manufacturers, today celebrated Orange County Transportation Authority’s (“OCTA”) unveiling of ten new zero-emission, hydrogen fuel cell-electric Xcelsior CHARGE H2™ heavy-duty transit buses in Santa Ana, California. The order was previously announced in April 2018, at that time becoming America’s largest procurement and deployment of fuel cell-electric buses.

The buses, which are battery-electric vehicles using compressed hydrogen as an energy source, were unveiled during today’s celebratory event hosted by OCTA Chief Executive Officer Darrell Johnson and OCTA Chairman and Mayor of Garden Grove Steve Jones, alongside Congressman Gil Cisneros and other project partners including the California Air Resources Board (“CARB”), South Coast Air Quality Management District, and Center for Transportation and the Environment (“CTE”). Together, the buses add sustainability to OCTA’s fleet and will serve communities throughout Anaheim, Garden Grove, Orange, Santa Ana, and Westminster.

In addition to launching the ten Xcelsior CHARGE H2™ buses into service today, OCTA also debuted the largest hydrogen fueling station in the nation for public transportation, showcasing its $22.6 million investment in zero-emission transit.

“Since 1990, New Flyer has proudly delivered over 1,000 buses to OCTA and today is thrilled to support its continued evolution to zero-emission; reducing California’s carbon footprint and providing cleaner, healthier, quieter neighborhoods,” said Chris Stoddart, President, New Flyer. “As OCTA works toward its 2021 vision focused on sustainability, reliability, and innovative leadership in transit, New Flyer will continue to provide mobility solutions that protect the surrounding environment and build livable communities across Orange County.”

New Flyer has delivered nearly 10,400 buses into the State of California, and has over 200 on order or pending delivery over the coming year.

OCTA serves 34 cities within Orange County, providing transportation to the state’s third-largest county and supporting nearly 40 million passengers per year. OCTA and New Flyer are partners in the Fuel Cell Electric Bus Commercialization Consortium project (“FCEBCC”) funded by CARB through  the statewide initiative known as California Climate Investments (“CCI”). To date, the funding award of $12.47 million is the largest single grant from CARB to a transit agency, supporting CARB’s statewide mandate that public transit agencies transition to 100 percent zero-emission bus fleets by 2040.

New Flyer manufactures the Xcelsior CHARGE H2™ in forty and sixty-foot lengths. The Xcelsior CHARGE H2™ for OCTA is able to achieve in excess of 300 miles of zero-emission range without refueling. For more information, visit www.newflyer.com/CHARGEH2.

New Flyer is proud to lead the industry with innovative mobility solutions including zero-emission buses, technology, and infrastructure that together, help build sustainable public transit across America. New Flyer has more than 50 years of experience in manufacturing zero-emission buses (ZEBs), with more electric buses on the road in America than any other manufacturer.  NFI offers four locations in California to support customers with bus service, parts, and manufacturing support, located in Ontario, Los Alamitos, Fresno, and the Bay Area (Hayward).

The FCEBCC project is part of CCI, a statewide initiative investing billions of cap-and-trade dollars into the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, strengthening the economy and improving public health and the environment, particularly in disadvantaged communities. It also creates incentive for industries to invest in clean technologies and develop innovative ways to reduce pollution. CCI projects include affordable housing, renewable energy, public transportation, zero-emission vehicles, environmental restoration, more sustainable agriculture, recycling and much more. At least 35 percent of these investments are made in disadvantaged and low-income communities. For more information, visit arb.ca.gov/caclimateinvestments.

About NFI

With 9,000 team members operating from more than 50 facilities across ten countries, NFI is a leading independent global bus manufacturer providing a comprehensive suite of mass transportation solutions under brands: New Flyer^® (heavy-duty transit buses), Alexander Dennis Limited (single and double-deck buses), Plaxton (motor coaches), MCI^® (motor coaches), ARBOC^® (low-floor cutaway and medium-duty buses), and NFI Parts™. NFI buses and motor coaches 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).  In total, NFI now supports over 105,000 buses and coaches currently in service around the world. NFI common shares are traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol NFI. News and information are available at www.nfigroup.com, www.www.newflyer.com, www.mcicoach.com, www.arbocsv.com, www.alexander-dennis.com, and www.nfi.parts.

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. It also offers infrastructure development through New Flyer Infrastructure Solutions™, a service dedicated to providing safe, sustainable, and reliable charging and mobility solutions. New Flyer actively supports over 41,000 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.www.newflyer.com.

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