New Zealand launches electric milk tanker and hydrogen postie truck

Two zero-emission trucks have entered operation in New Zealand in two firsts for decarbonising the country’s transport sector, including an electric milk tanker and a hydrogen postal truck.

New Zealand’s energy and resources minister Dr Megan Woods celebrated on Monday the launch of the two new trucks, both of which were supported with government funding.

“These government partnerships with industry are vital to achieving our climate goals, said Dr Woods.

“It’s my hope these projects will deliver valuable lessons and financial insights that will be shared with others, and can be replicated across the national heavy fleet.”

The electric milk tanker – definitely New Zealand’s first such truck, and maybe even the world’s – named Milk-E, is entering the fleet of New Zealand dairy co-operative Fonterra, which received $NZ427,000 in co-funding to purchase the electric truck cab and chassis and convert it into a milk tanker.

The conversion process was undertaken by a local engineer who specialises in mounting Fonterra’s tanker barrels and Fonterra’s in-house service technicians who specialise in building their tankers.

Milk-E will be operated from Fonterra’s Waitoa site and will use a battery swap system to trial how the technology could work within a larger fleet of trucks to minimise downtime from battery charging.

“Right across the Co-op our teams are constantly looking at how we can decrease our emissions – from on farm, to at our sites and throughout our transport network,” said Fraser Whineray, Fonterra’s chief operating officer.

“The team here at our Morrinsville Workshop have done a fantastic job of pulling this tanker together. Being a New Zealand first, there’s been a lot of creative thinking and Kiwi ingenuity to bring Milk-E to life.”

With a range of about 140-kilometres on a full charge, the cab and chassis were purchased from XCMG – a Chinese construction machinery group and will be capable of carrying 28,000 litres of milk.

The second of the two zero-emission trucks entering operation this week is New Zealand’s first hydrogen truck, and the first of five Hyundai XCIENT hydrogen-powered fuel cell electric trucks purchased by Hyundai NZ which will be operated by NZ Post.

Expected to be deployed on the Whangarei-Auckland-Hamilton route, the new XCIENT postal truck will replace a diesel truck and is expected to save 170 tonnes of CO2 per year.

High-capacity hydrogen refuelling stations are also already in development, with four expected to come online on the North Island in early 2023. Until these first commercial refuelling stations are built, however, the NZ Post hydrogen truck will be fuelled using green hydrogen supplied by BOC.

“Kiwis should keep an eye out for the XCIENT – it might be their parcel in the back, travelling without the environmental impact of diesel, and in a remarkably quieter manner,” said Andy Sinclair, Hyundai New Zealand CEO.

“Heavy transport emissions are notoriously hard to offset, as electric battery vehicle alternatives can’t offer companies the same productivity. Larger trucks are driven all day, every day over long distances.

“Taking multiple hours to recharge a battery regularly is time the truck can’t be on the road. Hydrogen technology is an important solution for NZ Post and other similar businesses to introduce as part of reducing heavy freight emissions.”

“Sustainability is a big deal to all of us at NZ Post and we see hydrogen technology as one way to contribute to reducing emissions within New Zealand’s road freight sector,” added David Walsh, NZ Post chief executive officer.

“We are very proud to be leading the way by putting the country’s first hydrogen truck into commercial operation.”