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Despite all the doom, gloom, and wishful thinking from the anti-EV crowd, the numbers paint a narrative of swift expansion in the commercial EV and ZEV (Zero-Emission Vehicle) markets. CALSTART’s latest figures reveal a remarkable 250% growth in the zero-emission heavy truck market.

While the challenge of long-haul trucking remains for BEV semi trucks, several commercial fleets have effectively implemented zero-emission trucks (ZETs) in regional delivery or drayage roles. As anticipated, California maintains its position as the leader in heavy ZET deployments across the United States. However, with “just” 3,075 ZETs deployed to date, according to the latest CALSTART report, California represents less than 20% of the total US ZET deployments.

Jessie Lund, CALSTART’s deputy director of truck technology and one of the named authors of CALSTART’s comprehensive “Zeroing in on Zero-emission Trucks” report, expressed some surprise at that fact. “The fact that ZETs have already been deployed in every state, while surprising,” Lund said, “speaks to a strong market for battery-electric trucks.”

E-vans drive commercial EV growth

While electric semis like the ones from Tesla and Freightliner tend to grab the headlines, it’s the commercial van segment that’s seeing the most rapid rates of EV adoption. According to CALSTART, the US has seen the deployment of more than 14,000 battery-electric cargo vans, with a significant surge of 11,835 units deployed in the first half of 2023. That is a staggering 461% increase in deployments compared to CALSTART’s previous report.

Commercial EV sales by segment

Following cargo vans with regard to total ZET deployments are yard tractors (1,134), HD trucks (867), medium-duty step vans (843), medium-duty trucks (442), and refuse trucks (48).

Visualization by CALSTART, via CCJ Digital.

“My biggest takeaway from the latest update is just how quickly this market is growing,” explains Lund. “Especially considering the data only covers the first half of 2023, it’s encouraging to see the ‘hockey stick’ exponential growth. Deployments have increased by an order of magnitude since the first iteration of this report (January, 2022) – and all that in spite of a global pandemic, supply chain challenges and economic volatility. This tells me that the market, while still relatively small compared to the overall truck market, has some serious momentum.”

The “hockey stick” growth curve; via CALSTART.

Electrek’s Take

Today, there are more than 160 zero-emission commercial truck models available in the US from more than 40 OEMs. That number continues to grow, too (heck, RAM announced a new commercial e-van, literally while I was typing this), and fleet managers will continue to buy electric vehicles as soon as they become available.

Why? Because fleet managers are focused on the bottom line costs of operating their fleets – and, regardless of their political leanings, EVs cost less to own and operate than comparable ICE models. Until that fact changes, converting whatever assets to they can to electric will remain a no-brainer.

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The first giant 15 MW turbine is up at Germany’s largest offshore wind farm

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The first giant 15 MW turbine is up at Germany’s largest offshore wind farm

Germany’s largest offshore wind farm under construction, EnBW’s He Dreiht, just hit a big milestone: The first enormous turbine is now up in the North Sea.

He Dreiht – which means “it spins” in Low German – is using Vestas’s massive 15 megawatt (MW) turbines, the first project in the world to install them. Just one spin of one of the rotors can generate enough electricity to power four households for an entire day.

When it’s finished, He Dreiht will have 64 mega turbines cranking out 960 megawatts (MW) of clean power – enough to supply around 1.1 million homes. And it’s being built without any government subsidies.

EnBW, one of Germany’s major energy companies, has been working in offshore wind for more than 15 years, but He Dreiht is their biggest project yet. “It will play a key role in helping us to significantly grow our renewable energy output from 6.6 GW to over 10 GW by 2030,” said Michael Class, who heads up EnBW’s generation portfolio development.

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The project is a win for Vestas, too. “With the installation of the first V236-15.0 MW, we have reached an important milestone for both the He Dreiht project and our offshore ramp-up, which helps Germany build a more secure, affordable, and sustainable energy system,” said Nils de Baar, president of Vestas Northern & Central Europe.

He Dreiht is located about 85 kilometers (53 miles) northwest of Borkum and 110 kilometers (68 miles) west of Helgoland. At peak times, more than 500 workers will be out at sea building the farm, using a fleet of more than 60 ships. EnBW’s offshore team in Hamburg is running the show.

The installation process is a major operation. The 64 foundations were already set in the seabed last year. Parts for the turbines are loaded onto the installation vessel Wind Orca in Esbjerg, Denmark, and shipped out in a 12-hour journey to the construction site. From there, the turbines are lifted into place. Meanwhile, crews are also working on internal wind farm cabling.

A partner consortium made up of Allianz Capital Partners, AIP, and Norges Bank Investment Management owns 49.9% of the shares in He Dreiht.

Read more: Trump admin halts $5 billion NY offshore wind project mid-build


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Tesla gives update on Tesla Semi factory, says on track for volume production in 2026

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Tesla gives update on Tesla Semi factory, says on track for volume production in 2026

Tesla has released a quick update about its Tesla Semi factory in Nevada. It says that it is on track for volume production of the electric semi truck in 2026.

The Tesla Semi was first scheduled to go into production in 2019, but it has faced numerous delays.

Now, it appears that there is finally some momentum to bring it to volume production.

For the last two years, Tesla has been working to build a new factory next to Gigafactory Nevada, where it builds the battery packs and drive units for most of its electric vehicles built in North America.

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Today, Tesla released a “progress update on the factory, confirming that it finished building and it’s now working on deploying the production lines:

Tesla had previously mentioned aiming for volume production by 2025, but it is now only talking about starting production toward the end of the year and ramping up next year.

The automaker reiterated its planned production capacity of 50,000 units.

We recently reported that an early Tesla Semi customer, Ryder, stated that the electric truck program is experiencing more delays and a price increase described as “dramatic.”

They now expect to take deliveries of their first trucks later in 2026 and said that the price has increased “dramatically,” leading them to scale back their pilot program from 42 to 18 Tesla Semi trucks.

When originally unveiling the Tesla Semi in 2017, the automaker mentioned prices of $150,000 for a 300-mile range truck and $180,000 for the 500-mile version. Tesla also took orders for a “Founder’s Series Semi” at $200,000.

However, Tesla didn’t update the prices when launching the “production version” of the truck in late 2022. Price increases have been speculated, but the company has never confirmed them.

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Vietnamese solar giant Boviet opens first US factory in North Carolina

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Vietnamese solar giant Boviet opens first US factory in North Carolina

Vietnamese solar panel maker Boviet Solar just opened the doors to its first US factory — a huge new PV module plant in Greenville, North Carolina.

The company dropped $294 million into the state-of-the-art facility, which will pump out Boviet’s Gamma Series monofacial and Vega Series bifacial solar panels. They’re using advanced PERC and N-Type solar cell tech, which basically means these panels are built to deliver higher efficiency and better performance across residential, commercial, industrial, and utility-scale projects.

The Greenville factory’s first phase is now online with an annual PV module output capacity of 2 gigawatts (GW). For Phase 2, which is scheduled to come online in the second half of 2026, Boviet will invest another $100 million to add 600,000 square feet and ramp up to another 2 GW. It will make high-efficiency solar cells.

Once both phases are complete, Boviet’s campus will cover more than 1 million square feet of manufacturing and R&D space. It’s one of the biggest clean energy manufacturing projects North Carolina has ever seen.

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The jobs impact is significant, too. The first phase will create 460 skilled local jobs. Phase 2 is expected to add another 908, bringing the total to over 1,300 direct jobs, plus nearly 2,000 more indirect jobs across the region. That’s good news for Pitt County’s economy, real estate market, and workforce training programs.

“This facility is not just creating jobs, but creating opportunity, innovation, and a stronger foundation for eastern North Carolina,” said Senator Kandie Smith. Governor Josh Stein added that Boviet Solar’s move shows how North Carolina is leading the way in clean energy growth.

Read more: Thomas Built Buses debuts its next-gen electric school bus


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