Australian electricity distributor Ausgrid has added three new electric trucks to its fleet as a part of its first ever electric partnership. It says it is pushing to enhance its technology.
The new electric trucks are part of its push to build knowledge, accelerate network capability and help enable electric vehicle options for the business fleets of the future.
Ausgrid CEO Marc England says the two new Foton electric tippers and one SEA electric flatbed truck will help Ausgrid learn how to better enable other businesses to electrify their fleets.
“As a key enabler of electrification, Ausgrid needs to understand what infrastructure is required to get many more EV trucks on the road,” England says.
“Ausgrid needs to facilitate this shift towards EV adoption and a net-zero future but do it in a way that is fully supported by the electricity grid.
“Ultimately, we want to ensure that any individual or company wanting to go electric, no matter how complex their fleet needs, is able to do so.”
Already leading the industry with its EV fleet, the two new Foton EV tippers and one SEA electric flatbed truck are the latest steps in Ausgrid’s goal to electrify 900 Ausgrid vans, cars and trucks by 2029.
Ausgrid says NSW has the largest number of EVs on the road in Australia, while in the past year, the number of NSW EV drivers doubled to around 12,000.
Ausgrid supply chain and fleet head Tim Kynoch says the inclusion of the larger electric vehicles to the fleet is part of an electrification plan.
“As these are our first electric heavy vehicles, we had to ensure they had the capacity and range to do what we and our customers needed them to do,” Kynoch says.
“Ausgrid is committed to remaining at the forefront of electric vehicle technology.”
Ausgrid says the use of the three trucks will reduce its diesel consumption by 10,000 litres per year and contribute to its net-zero goals.