Chinese electric truck company Windrose Electric has secured road vehicle type approval from the Australian department of infrastructure for its electric prime mover, one of the last steps before the truck can go on sale.
Founded in 2022 by Wen Han to develop battery electric trucks which would compete with Tesla’s Semi, Windrose traces a winding background, with investors including an Australian property group , US venture capital financiers, and Chinese state-owned funds, and a headquarters in Belgium.
The company’s flagship E700 Electric Truck boasts a 700 kilometre range when fully loaded at 49 tonnes and fast charging speeds of 860 kW. Peak power tops out at 1,045kW and horsepower of 1,400 from a 705 kWh battery lithium iron phosphate (LFP).
Windrose is also already targeting immediate improvements, with a third generation model due in 2028 with a range of 815km, and a fourth generation model in 2030 which would have in excess of 1,000km of range and improved efficiency per kilometre.
According to Windrose’s LinkedIn post, the E700 has achieved over 600km range with multiple different customers in real operations and has also proved that “[electric vehicle (EV)] B-double linehaul on the Hume [Highway (Hwy)] is possible with real deliveries”.
Australian trucking company New Energy Transport has also been trialling Windrose’s electric prime mover, and earlier this year used one of its trucks to complete Australia’s first inter-city delivery from warehouse to customers.
The Windrose prime mover, along with a fleet of last mile delivery vehicles, helped deliver a bulk load of Who Gives A Crap toilet paper from Sydney to Canberra.
According to New Energy Transport, the energy costs from the 460km covered by the Chinese-made Windrose prime mover and the last mile delivery vehicles supplied by logistics group ANC in March were 85 per cent below the cost of a diesel truck.
The timing of Windrose’s announcement on their LinkedIn account on Monday – is interesting as New Energy Transport also announced on Monday a successful $5 million fund raise which will help the company put 20 electric prime movers on the road in NSW by the end of the year.
Given that New Energy Transport has been trialling Windrose electric prime movers, and referenced Windrose as a supplier in material provided to media, the timing of Windrose’s vehicle type approval could not have come at a better time.
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