Tesla is expected to deliver its long-awaited electric big rigs to Pepsi by year’s end. Led by iconic Elon Musk, the organization has emerged as the U.S. leader in electric passenger vehicles, but delays have plagued production. Five years after Pepsi ordered the Tesla Semi trucks, other manufacturers have jumped into the Class 8, zero-emissions market.
“Excited to announce start of production of Tesla Semi Truck with deliveries to @Pepsi on Dec 1st,” Musk reportedly tweeted.
The initial trucks are expected to be used at a Frito-Lay plant in Modesto, California, and a beverage facility in Sacramento. The Golden State has been leaning hard on freight operations to lower emissions and plans to ban diesel truck sales. Tesla is expected to deliver 15 electric rigs by year’s end, with Pepsi reportedly ordering more. Major corporations such as Walmart Inc. and Anheuser-Busch also reportedly plunked down deposits. But while Tesla was working out the engineering and logistical issues, others battery-electric heavy-duty truck manufacturers have taken early market share.
The Nikola Tre BEV delivered 93 models as freight transportation companies took advantage of a voucher program to offset the high cost of electric trucks. Although Nikola recalled the tractors due to a seat belt issue, the organization remains flush with orders. It’s also brokering a partnership with IVECO to roll out zero-emissions semis in Europe.
“Today we are making history with the first products for the European market of IVECO’s powerful partnership with Nikola Corporation,” IVECO Group Truck Business Unit President Luca Sra reportedly said. “Together, our teams have designed a modular platform capable of hosting both fuel cell and battery propulsion technologies, starting with the European 4×2 Artic version of the Nikola Tre BEV heavy-duty truck making its debut here.”
The European Nikola Tre would include a battery system capable of traversing 300 miles. It would also have a fuel cell with a 500-mile range. Although not tested by truckers pulling loads, the Tesla Semi reportedly has a range of 500 miles on a single charge.
Volvo, known for its luxury passenger vehicles, has thrown its hat into the ring as well. Class 8 truck production began in North America two years ago and European-based plants started up in September. Orders for the Volvo VNR Electric have been fielded from one of the largest and growing freight and delivery operations — Amazon.
“Amazon is committed to decarbonizing its fleet, and the middle-mile has been a notoriously hard-to-abate sector. That’s why welcoming these electric heavy-goods vehicles from Volvo into our fleet is such a critical milestone. We’re operating one of the fastest growing commercial transportation electrification programs, and we’ll continue to invest and innovate to decarbonize and deliver packages to customers with zero emissions,” Andreas Marschner, vice president of transportation services for Europe at Amazon, reportedly stated.
Volvo already delivered 30 models to a Maersk subdivision in California and another 126 are on order. Tesla and its iconic founder may be capturing the public’s imagination, but others are securing market share.
Sources: ttnews.com, ttnews.com, nikomotor.com
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