The Australian Renewable Energy Agency’s (ARENA) Driving the Nation Fund is putting 112 electric trucks on the road to make last-mile deliveries (LMD), with $12.8 million invested in transport businesses across the country.
Freight and logistics provider ANC are one of the companies making the move to electric through the fund, unlocking its $45.5 million ‘Project Spark’ in conjunction with ARENA.
The project aims to address barriers that owner drivers face in transitioning to electric trucks either in subcontracting roles or as part of fleets, and how the government can help them to move to decarbonisation.
ARENA CEO Darren Miller said Project Spark marks ARENA’s first foray into LMD and builds on the agency’s investments in the electrification of road freight and logistics.
“The breadth of innovation in Project Spark, across both supply and demand-side measures, is commercially astute, practically workable, and very exciting,” he says.
“It promises to kick-start a step change in electrifying last mile delivery in Australia by lowering the total costs to own and run electric trucks.
“The project demonstrates use cases for battery electric trucks in last mile operations, tackling constraints that have so far made it hard for the industry to transition away from internal combustion engine vehicles.”
ANC’s fleet consists of a network contracted owner-drivers to provide LMD services to some of Australia’s most iconic retail brands, including IKEA, JB HI-FI, The Good Guys, Bunnings, Who Gives A Crap, Temple and Webster, and William Sonoma.
Owner drivers looking to move to electric face barriers including higher capital costs, limited access to charging infrastructure, costly and complex private charging options, and constrained revenue potential.
ANC is looking to lower the cost of ownership for electric vehicles for owner drivers, proposing to offer discounted trucks with leasing options, improve battery-charging and vehicle-utilisation models, and unlock new revenue streams aims to resolve these challenges.
“This grant from ARENA is a vote of confidence in ANC’s vision for a cleaner, greener future,” says ANC CEO Joe Sofra.
“With this support, we will expedite the deployment of battery electric vehicles, reducing emissions and leading the charge towards a net zero emissions delivery ecosystem.
“We are poised to make a substantial impact on the market, and more importantly, on the environment. We thank ARENA for their support in helping ANC drive this pivotal shift in the industry.”