FedEX is purchasing its first North American all-electric vehicles from two different suppliers instead of developing its own priprietary technology.
Two of the new all-electric trucks come from Navistar, and are being assembled in Indiana. These are based on the Modec design already operated by FedEx in Europe.
Another pair of electric vehicles is being purchased from a different manufacturer for delivery to the Los Angeles area later in 2010. Both sets of electric vehicles are capable of full eight-hour shift of deliveries before the vehicles need recharging, the company said.
A FedEx-branded prototype all-electric truck from Navistar is being unveiled in Chicago to kick-off a demonstration tour of the technology. The vehicle will be operated for FedEx customers, employees, and local officials in several stops along Route 66 between Chicago and Los Angeles.
FedEx added that by the end of June, the its alternative energy fleet will have grown to 1,869 vehicles in service around the world, helping to diversify and expand the all-electric and hybrid-electric vehicle market around the globe.
Beyond the nine new electric trucks to be deployed in Los Angeles and Paris, FedEx has purchased ten additional hybrid-electric vehicles that will be added to its California fleet throughout the spring, based in Oakland.
Mitch Jackson, vice president of environmental affairs and sustainability at FedEx, said: ”Electric trucks are still in their infancy, but we think they have a bright future in the mix of alternative energy vehicles.
”Down the road, we see the possibility of charging electric vehicle fleets with low- or zero-emission electricity generated on site by such innovations as solar electric arrays, like those at FedEx locations in California, New Jersey and Germany, or the Bloom Energy Server, another new technology we’re helping to pioneer through evaluating it at our solar-powered hub in Oakland.”
