ELECTRIFICATION.  Electric ATV manufacturer THERON has reached a new milestone in its quest for recognition, with Parks Canada and Sépaq (Société des établissements de plein air du Québec) each equipping themselves with a Reever.

The company incubated at Shawinigan's Centre d'entrepreneuriat Alphonse-Desjardins (CEADS) hopes that these two prestigious institutional customers will open the door to larger orders in the future.

"The vehicles will be tested over the next year at La Mauricie National Park and Grands-Jardins National Park in Charlevoix. We will follow up on the validation of these vehicles in their real-life environment. We also have an agreement to develop and test future products and accessories such as electrified motorized trailers," explains Philippe Lafontaine, Head of Design and Marketing at THERON.

The City of Shawinigan is another new customer with two units, as is Sylvain Juteau of Roulez Électrique in Trois-Rivières, who has added a Reever to his fleet.  Nearly a hundred pre-orders have been registered so far, while production is running at a rate of around three vehicles a month.

"For the moment, we're not aiming to go faster at all costs. We want to do things by the book and follow up with our first customers. This practice boosts our DATA collection for future designs and enables us to make final adjustments. The aim is to offer reliable, faultless vehicles destined for official marketing by the end of 2022", emphasizes one of the company's three founders.

In recent months, for example, THERON has been testing its ATVs in winter conditions. "We found that, like all electric vehicles, we can expect a 30% loss of range, but that this reduction diminishes as the battery warms up. We also found that our Reever started without difficulty even in very cold weather," continues Philippe Lafontaine.

By the end of spring, THERON plans to launch its four-wheel-drive model as well as a luxury Black Edition version. Available for $16,900 each, the two-wheel-drive Reever has a range of 180 kilometers, a full recharge in three hours, and a top speed of 120 km/h.

With orders piling up, the company has had to expand its workspace, and ultimately, its expansion will inevitably involve a move outside CEADS, admits Philippe Lafontaine. "We're still looking to stay in Shawinigan," he concludes.