Australian freight giant Team Global Express has made the biggest order for electric trucks in Australia after landing an AU$20 million deal with the Australian Renewable Energy Agency to fund the purchase.

The deal involves the purchase of 36 medium duty electric trucks from the Swedish based Volvo Trucks and another 24 light rigid e-canter battery electric trucks from Daimler Fuso, along with the charging infrastructure for its Sydney transport base.

The purchase orders represent the biggest single electric truck order for Volvo and will be the biggest electric truck trial in Australia, if not the world.

The ARENA funds will account for nearly half of the AU$44 million costs of the truck and the investment in the Bungarribee parcels depot in western Sydney, which will include 63 chargers (16 Kempower 120kW fast chargers and 47 Jet Charge 22kW AC chargers).

Team Global will also install a 1MWh battery at the site, and add more rooftop solar – probably around 500kW – to the 400kW system that already exists. It will contract further grid consumption from wind and solar suppliers.

The Volvo FL Electric trucks – which will be delivered early in 2023 – will be equipped with four 66kWh battery packs for increased range and improved charging performance. The FL Electric utilises a 600-volt single motor electric drive system as well as a 2-speed automated transmission.

The trucks will be fitted with 10-pallet van bodies and will become a part of the company’s Sydney metropolitan pick-up and delivery fleet. The trucks have a gross mass of 16,000kg and a payload of 5,500kg. The ARENA grant will help bridge the gap between the cost of battery electric trucks and diesel trucks, which in the case of these two models are two or three times more expensive.

The total spend on the project is AU$44 million, including charging and other site infrastructure that will help power the electric express parcels fleet based at the Sydney depot.

Volvo Trucks has been one of the leaders in the shift to electric heavy transport, and was the first to begin series production of heavy-duty electric trucks at its Gothenburg factory in September.

“We are extremely happy to see a valued customer such as Team Global Express take such a significant step towards zero-emissions transport,” says Paul Illmer, the vice president of emerging technology business development at Volvo Group Australia. Note: Paul Illmer will be presenting as part of the Wood Transport & Logistics 2023 event being run for local forestry and log haulage companies in Rotorua, New Zealand on 24-25 May 2023

“Importantly it’s also a show of faith in our ability to deliver electric transport solutions that are efficient, productive and dependable business solutions. Electromobility doesn’t have to be a compromise and ultimately, I feel we will prove this and more as these trucks take to the streets during 2023.”

It is the second major initiative from the federal government on electric vehicles in the last week, following the AU$20.5 million committed by the Clean Energy Finance Corporation to support discount loans for electric vehicle purchases made through Taurus Motor Finance.

Source: thedriven