It appears DHL's wait for delivery was worth it after the shipping giant finally tested out its order of Tesla Semi trucks.
The company ordered 10 of the electric vehicles in 2017, as Electrek detailed, not long after the prototype was revealed. Despite having to wait nearly seven years for the technology to arrive on the company's doorstep, the results so far have been impressive.
During a two-week trial period, the company detailed that the truck was put through its paces by running typical routes for its operations in Livermore, California. During that time, DHL's Semis covered 3,000 miles, consumed 1.72 kilowatt hours of electricity per mile, and achieved 500 miles of range on a single charge with a fully loaded trailer.
DHL said that the vehicle produced that power-usage figure while topping 50 miles per hour in average speed. "The result exceeded our expectations and even Tesla's own rating," the company said.
"Maximizing range and efficiency is crucial to proving that long-haul electric vehicles can perform equivalent work to diesel," Semi's head of business development, Graham Carroll, said. "We're excited to see DHL confirm the benefits of the Semi's advanced technology and driver-centric features in live commercial operations."
Tesla's Semi is one of the greatest hopes for bringing clean energy to the long-distance road haulage sector. According to the Clean Air Task Force, "In the U.S., heavy trucking emits 24% of all emissions from the transportation sector or around 450 million metric tons of CO2 each year."
Therefore, trucking contributes significantly to the production of planet-warming pollution and the degradation of air quality which leads to an increased risk of cardiovascular and respiratory illnesses in humans.
Having a vehicle that can provide 500 miles on a single charge while producing no tailpipe pollution could be a game-changer for the industry, also allowing companies to save money on refueling and maintenance costs.
"The Tesla Semi has real potential to disrupt the market and accelerate the much-needed transition to zero-emissions long-haul transport," Jim Monkmeyer, president of transportation of DHL Supply Chain, said.
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