Clean Technica | By: Steve Hanley | February 02, 2018:
Tesla has booked pre-orders for its all-electric Semi heavy duty trucks from at least 9 major corporations. Now, some of those companies are planning how they will charge those trucks once they arrive. In particular, Anheuser Busch and United Parcel Service say they are working closely with Tesla to design charging equipment that will be installed at their transportation hubs. CNBC, citing a report by Reuters, says the Tesla Semis will initially be used on routes that allow them to be begin and end at company terminals rather than stopping to recharge along the way.
James Sembrot, senior director of supply chain for Anheuser-Busch, says his company is considering installing chargers for the 40 Tesla trucks it has pre-ordered at its larger breweries and other key locations in its distribution network. “What was important to us was to make a big investment in this cutting edge technology and secure our place in line,” he says.
Scott Phillippi, global engineering director for UPS, tells CNBC his company is working closely with Tesla to plan for the charging infrastructure it will need to power up the 125 Tesla Semis it has pre-ordered. Loblaw, which operates one of the largest fleet of trucks in Canada, is planning to use solar energy to charge the electric trucks it has pre-ordered from Tesla. Catherine Thomas, a spokesperson for Loblaw, says her company is considering Tesla and “a few other companies” for the design and technology needed to make those solar chargers a reality.
Mike O’Connell, senior director of supply chain for Frito-Lay North America, says his company is talking to Tesla about how to design a charging network at its terminals. “We have a lot of in-house capability around energy and engineering … and certainly Tesla brings their expertise to the table on energy and charging.” PepsiCo, which is owned by Frito-Lay, has pre-ordered 100 Tesla Semis. In addition to working with Tesla, it may explore the possibility of sharing charging facilities and the cost of building them with other companies.
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