The New South Wales government has announced that a solar-powered truck battery swapping station has been officially completed at the state’s Moorebank Intermodal Precinct.
The new cutting-edge facility will allow electric trucks produced by Janus Electric on the Central Coast to swap the two metre by 1.2 metre batteries for fully charged batteries and head off on their run.
The solar-powered charge and change station results in a swap time of only four minutes, with a truck with a single trailer then able to travel between 300 to 400 kilometres on a single battery charge.
“Freight demand is projected to rise by 34 per cent across NSW from 2021 to 2061. We’re going to need more capacity, not less, which is why we’re working on a plan with the freight industry to get us to net zero,” NSW transport minister Jo Haylen says.
“Many freight operators are natural innovators and are already investing in low emission technologies.
“The NSW government’s Zero Emissions Freight Policy means that the government is supporting industry and helping them invest in new and exciting technologies across the state and at key freight centres like Moorebank.”
The precinct is the first of its kind to be built at an intermodal terminal where freight is swapped between roads and rail, with there being eight other charge and change stations across Australia and more on the way.
The Janus Electric battery-swapping technology allows for batteries to be powered by rooftop solar energy and minimises wait times for drivers.
The investment in the new facility follows the NSW government’s introduction of the Towards Net Zero Emissions Freight Policy which outlines government and industry actions that will reduce the carbon footprint of heavy vehicles and rail freight.
New modelling shows freight transport and logistics contributed an estimated $74.3 billion to NSW in 2022-23, with the sector predicted to grow to an estimated $131.5 billion by 2060-61.
“Launching this solar-powered charge and change station is a crucial step towards a cleaner, greener future for Australia’s transport sector,” Janus Electric CEO Lex Forsyth says.