Shippers Coalition Orders 2,500 Electric Class 8 Trucks, Tesla Named Primary OEM

A coalition of cargo-owning shippers has placed an order for 2,500 battery-electric Class 8 trucks to accelerate large-scale deployment of zero-emission heavy-duty vehicles, according to a Sept. 22 press release. Tesla was selected as primary original equipment manufacturer, with Volvo, Kenworth and RIDE as secondary OEMs. Coalition members include Ikea, Red Bull, Microsoft and PepsiCo. The order is organized through the Zero-Emission Truck Shipper-Carrier Alliance Leading Electrification (ZET SCALE), jointly operated by Catalyst Mobility and the Smart Freight Centre. ZET Financial is purchasing the trucks and will lease them to participating fleets. Initial deployments target Los Angeles, Seattle, Chicago, New York City and several Texas markets. ZET SCALE aims to scale its model to 10,000 or more electric trucks. The aggregation approach is designed to let manufacturers price at scale, addressing cost challenges that have slowed adoption.