Orange EV and Ability Tri-Modal Transportation Services announced the launch of five trucks to three of Tri-Modal’s distribution and warehouse centers.
The five Orange EV T-Series pure-electric terminal vehicles are en route to more than 750,000 sq.-ft. of combined warehouse space near the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles.
Ability Tri-Modal created and released the heavy-duty electrically-powered trucks in an effort to reduce both its carbon footprint and operational costs, and encourage other companies to do the same, explained Greg Owen, the company’s owner and head coach.
“The Orange EV trucks are a solution-based purchase,” Owen said. “They’re going to give us a return on investment.”
Ability Tri-Modal allotted its portion of capital from the Hybrid and Zero-Emission Truck and Bus Voucher Incentive Project (HVIP) to the acquisition of their Orange EV trucks. HVIP is presently offering stipends of as much as $175,000 per Orange EV terminal truck.
The company uses 10 terminal tractors for yard-based work, which run as much as 20 hours per day for five days each week.
“The yard truck is the hardest-working piece of equipment in our fleet, and it’s also the most affected by increasingly strict environmental regulation,” Owen said. For the past 12 years, two or three diesel trucks were out of commission in the shop at any given time, he explained, until Ability Tri-Modal implemented Orange EV technology.
It looked for a diesel alternative, but earlier options weren’t viable, Owen said.
“We then spoke with fleets that have been heavily operating Orange EV trucks for years, proving Orange EV’s newer patent-pending technology does the job,” he stated. “These fleets indicate downtime is minimal, maintenance and fuel costs are reduced, and Orange EV is committed to their customers and ongoing product development.”
Orange EV’s chief commercial officer Mike Saxton commended Ability Tri-Modal on its innovation and spoke to their partnership.
“It’s been an honor to work with Greg Owen and his team to put in service the first commercially-deployed, 100% electric Class 8 trucks directly supporting the California ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach,” Saxton said.
