EV Delivery Vehicles To Be Added to California Fleet
FedEx Corp. announced this week that it will be expanding its fleet of alternative fuel delivery vehicles in California by adding 1,000 Chinese-built Chanje electric vans to its fleet. FedEx will purchase 100 vans and lease the other 900 from Ryder, Chanje’s U.S. partner, which also will provide support service for the vehicles.
“FedEx continually seeks new ways to maximize operational efficiency, minimize impacts and find innovative solutions through the company’s Reduce, Replace, Revolutionize approach to sustainability,” said Mitch Jackson, FedEx Chief Sustainability Officer. “Our investment in these vehicles is part of our commitment to that approach of serving our customers and connecting the world responsibly and resourcefully.”
That commitment shows a serious bump up with this purchase. According to its most recent sustainability report, FedEx only had a little more than 2100 electric vehicles in operation at the end of 2017, with most of them ground support equipment for the company’s huge airport operations. This purchase will serious upshift the company’s on-road EV focus. FedEx also has 20 Tesla Semis on order. For perspective, FedEx has a total of 170,000 on- and off-road vehicles in its worldwide fleet.
The purchase also is consistent with FedEx’s move to create more of its own energy. From that same sustainability report, the company reported having generated 20.8 million kWh of electricity in 2017. The move to electric vehicles can make good use of all that clean power.
We’ve Driven It
Clean Fleet Report drove the van recently and found that it appeared to be targeted for FedEx/UPS last-mile delivery routes. It will have competition from other start-ups like Thor, which has inked a deal with UPS. Big fleets like FedEx, UPS and others like Walmart are eager to try out new technologies, but there’s no guarantee even orders as big as those for Chanje and Thor will lead to a change in the market.
For the moment, FedEx believes the Chanje V8100 will cover much of its needs. The unibody van boasts a 150-mile range, 675 cubic feet of cargo capacity and a 6000-pound payload. In addition, the manufacturer claims it I’s capable of tackling a 30-percent grade due to its dual electric motors delivering 564 pounds-feet of torque to the rear wheels. The new version has a 13.2-kW onboard charger capable of an 80 percent recharge in a little more than one hour from a DC fast-charger.
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