Get FinancingToyota & Kenworth Debut Their First Co-Developed Fuel Cell Electric Truck
Toyota and Kenworth just revealed their first heavy-duty fuel cell electric truck (FCET), which the companies co-developed as part of their collaboration with the Port of Los Angeles and the California Air Resources Board (CARB). The truck, which at its core is a Kenworth T680 powered by Toyota fuel cell technology, is the first of 10 such vehicles currently being developed for the Zero-and-Near-Zero-Emission Freight Facilities Project (ZANZEFF).
ZANZEFF received $41 million from CARB as part of the California Climate Investments initiative and has been testing proof of concept trucks for two years. Toyota points out that the “Alpha” and “Beta” models involved in the project “have logged more than 14,000 miles of testing and real-world drayage operations in and around the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach while emitting nothing but water vapor.” The company adds that the first FCET vehicle “will begin drayage operations in the fourth quarter.”
Project Phases
The development and rollout of the 10 FCET vehicles is one phase in the larger FCET project, with four going to Toyota Logistics Services, three going to UPS, two going to Transportation Services Inc., and one going to Southern Counties Express. The second phase has Shell establishing two large-capacity hydrogen-fueling stations in Wilmington and Ontario, California. And the third phase involves the “expanded use of zero-emissions technology in cargo terminal and warehouse environments,” which includes using more zero-emissions forklifts at a Toyota port warehouse and two zero-emissions yard tractors at the Port of Hueneme, Toyota says.
More Work To Do
The parties involved in ZANZEFF understand that 10 trucks is just a starting point considering that more than 16,000 trucks operate in the Los Angeles and Long Beach ports alone. Toyota says that number could reach 32,000 by 2030 and points out that there are more than 43,000 drayage trucks operating in ports around the United States.
“The collaboration between the Port of Los Angeles, Kenworth, Toyota, and Shell is providing an excellent opportunity to demonstrate the viability of fuel cell electric technology in both drayage service and regional haul commercial vehicle applications operating in Southern California,” says Mike Dozier, general manager of Kenworth Truck Company and vice president at PACCAR. “The performance of the 10 Kenworth Class 8 trucks being developed under this program, the first of which debuted today, is targeted to meet or exceed that of a diesel-powered truck, while producing water as the only emissions byproduct.”
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Source: Kenworth
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