Dannar keeps adapting its Mobile Power Station to meet the needs of the electrified off road market, bringing power to forests, construction sites, and rural farms when it’s needed. But now, the MPS doing more than just provide the power to do the work – its moving dirt!

Since I first saw it at the 2020 AFWERKS challenge, the Dannar MPS has seemed to be a solution in search of a problem. What I mean is that, while a 22,000 lb., 500 kW self-propelled battery that can charge itself up on grid power then make its way to the off-grid vehicles that need it makes sense, there just haven’t been that many electric equipment assets deployed. Even at Volvo Days this past summer, where a Dannar MPS was used to bring energy to a Volvo EC230E Electric excavator and L120 Electric wheel loader, it wasn’t obvious that Dannar had a better, more effectively deployable solution than Volvo itself.

Again, a solution in search of a problem – or, is it?

Recently, Dannar has adapted its MPS concept into something more than “just” a rolling battery. Now, Dannar is adding implements, controls, and even whole operator cabs to turn the MPS into a vehicle that cam do real work.

Dannar evolution

Equipment assets and construction equipment are expected to perform thousands of tasks, but a lot of those assets can be built on a common chassis, with third-party upfitters adding the specialized bodies and implements that ultimately get the job done.

After proving that its MPS works, Dannar is pushing the idea that it can serve as a “common chassis” for a few hundred different types of vehicles, too – with Dannar’s (relatively) proven technology platform underneath.

“The chassis cab idea’s been around for a long, long time,” explained Gary Dannar, in an interview with Charged EVs. “It has a frame and possibly a cab on the front, along with an engine and transmission. Now, you can put an ambulance body on there, you can put a tank on there, you can do whatever you want with it.”

Emergency response

Dannar sees a universe where its MPS is something like a new-age ox, ready to take its high-capacity V2G-capable batteries wherever they’re needed, and help clear the road from whatever snow, rocks, or downed trees are blocking its path.

And, in many cases, Dannar is using implements and attachments that are already popular on the market. “We have a hydraulic system on the Mobile Power Station now,” adds Dannar. “The hydraulic system is run from an electric motor, so you end up with the best of both worlds. You have a high-torque electric motor with variable speed that is able to run a hydraulic system extremely efficiently and with a lot of control. That means a lot of these hydraulic attachments and tools actually work better (on the MPS).”

You can see a few concept renderings illustrating some of the possibilities of an upfit Dannar in the field, as well as a prototype MPS with an operator cab and bucket attachment, below. Once you give those a look, let us know what you think of Dannar’s do-it-all concept in the comments.

Dannar MPS + bucket attachment

SOURCES: Dannar, Charged EVs, Power Progress.

Leveraging its advanced autonomy stack, Oshkosh corporation’s AeroTech group has debuted a series of electric support vehicles for the “Airport of the Future” that includes this driverless, electric baggage and cargo handler.

Airport ground support vehicles like baggage handlers, fueling rigs, and airplane tugs are ideal use cases for electrification. They’re purpose-built, route-based vehicles operating exclusively on controlled job sites, on predictable routes, and performing tasks that reward high torque at low speeds. It should come as no surprise, then, that as Oshkosh looks ahead to the future it sees EVs.

“Technology is only as valuable as the positive impact it has on our lives and within our communities,” said John Pfeifer, president and chief executive officer, Oshkosh Corporation. “Our innovations use AI, autonomy, connectivity and electrification to support a safe, productive, quiet and clean future.”

The company believes its electric and autonomous gate and ground support equipment, combined with other connected technologies, will help airlines to optimize operations and reduce travel delays related to cargo and loading.

Oshkosh at CES

The company unveiled its baggage handler at CES last month, where Oshkosh showed-off AI-powerd self-driving vehicles and connected solutions like iOPS and ClearSky Smart Fleet technologies to improve operator safety both at airports and on construction job sites.

The best part? Instead of the vehicle going back to a designated charging area to power up, the power comes to it. When the EV is expected to be stable for a few minutes, an Oshkosh-developed Autonomous Mobile Charging Robot (AMCR). This concept brings wireless charging capabilities directly to equipment to help optimize uptime and support accelerated adoption of electrified products through the company’s ClearSky Smart Fleet technology.

You can check the vehicles out for yourself in the photo gallery, below. The AMCR is shown wearing JLG livery (JLG is a construction equipment brand owned by Oshkosh), and can provide power to any vehicle using a conventional J1772/CCS connector.

Oshkosh gallery

SOURCE | IMAGES: Oshkosk; photos by the author.

Renewable capacity additions, especially solar, will continue to drive the growth of US power generation over the next two years, according to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). 

According to its latest “Short-Term Energy Outlook” (STEO), the EIA expects that US utilities and independent power producers will add 26 gigawatts (GW) of solar capacity to the US electric power sector in 2025 and 22 GW in 2026.

Last year, the electric power sector added a record 37 GW of solar power capacity to the electric power sector, almost double the solar capacity additions in 2023. The EIA forecasts wind capacity additions will increase by around 8 GW in 2025 and 9 GW in 2026, slight increases from the 7 GW added in 2024.

Generating capacity for most other energy sources will remain mostly unchanged in 2025 and 2026. Natural gas-fired capacity growth slowed in 2024, with only 1 GW of capacity added to the power mix, but natural gas is still the largest source of US power generation.

The EIA forecasts that US coal retirements will accelerate, removing 6% (11 GW) of coal generating capacity from the US electricity sector in 2025 and removing another 2% (4 GW) in 2026. Last year, coal retirements represented about 3 GW of electric power capacity removed from the power system, which is the lowest annual amount of coal capacity retired since 2011.

The EIA expects that planned renewable capacity additions will support most of the growth in US electric power generation, which is anticipated to increase by 2% in 2025 and by 1% in 2026. The US electric power sector produced a total of 4,155 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity in 2024, up 3% from 2023.

Natural gas. In 2024, US natural gas-fired power plants generated a total of 1,767 billion kWh, 4% more than in 2023. Natural gas-fired power accounted for around 42% of the US electricity mix, mostly unchanged compared with 2023. The EIA expects natural gas generation to decline in 2025 by 3% to 1,712 billion kWh and decrease a further 1% to 1,692 billion kWh in 2026.

Renewables. The EIA expects renewable power generation will increase by 12% in the US to 1,058 billion kWh in 2025 and increase a further 8% to 1,138 billion kWh in 2026. Renewable sources were the second-largest contributor to US power generation in 2024 and accounted for 945 billion kWh, up 9% from 2023.

Nuclear. The EIA forecasts that US nuclear power generation will grow 2% to 796 billion kWh in 2025 and increase a further 1% to 800 billion kWh in 2026. Nuclear power generation in 2024 was up slightly from 2023, totaling 781 billion kWh.

Coal. Coal electricity generation was 647 billion kWh in 2024. The EIA expects US coal power generation to remain unchanged at around 640 billion kWh in 2025 and 2026.

Read more: No other energy source came close to matching solar’s rate of growth in 2024 – in numbers

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