Australian electric road freight start-up New Energy Transport has taken delivery of its first heavy electric prime mover from Swedish automotive giant Volvo, and signed up its first commercial freight partner.
The Volvo electric prime mover – the first of 11 that the company plans to roll out over the next 12 months – will be used by Unilever Australia, its inaugural electric freight partner – to complete deliveries from its Ingleburn distribution centre to customer sites across Sydney.
The first Volvo electric prime mover was handed over at a ceremony on Sydney Harbour, marking also the first truck delivered under a Volvo Financial Services arrangement with the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC).
“This partnership with New Energy Transport shows how the transition to lower-emission transport is moving forward through collaboration,” said Roger Alm, executive vice president of Volvo Group and president of Volvo Trucks.
“Volvo Trucks brings proven electric truck technology, Volvo Financial Services helps lower barriers to entry, and our dealer network supports customers wherever they operate.”
Volvo last week unveiled the first 10 electric prime movers to be built at its Australian factory.
New Energy Transport is providing Unilever with both the electric truck and ongoing operational support, which Unilever described as an important step in accelerating progress towards net zero emissions across our value chain.”
New Energy Transport was founded in 2024 with the goal of operating a fleet of fully electric prime movers powered by wholesale renewable energy, signed a deal in late 2025 with toilet paper manufacturer Who Gives A Crap, and says it has signed five memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with five major road freight buyers.
It has also secured a site near Walton, south-west of Sydney, to serve as its first truck depot – which is expected to be Australia’s biggest heavy electric truck depot to date. Development of the site was also later selected as one of four inaugural projects in the federal government’s new Investor Front Door program as a project of national significance.
NET also participated in Australia’s first inter-city delivery from warehouse to customers alongside last-mile logistics provider ANC Delivers, delivering a bulk load of Who Gives A Crap toilet paper from Sydney to Canberra using a Windrose electric prime mover before ANC handled last-mile deliveries.
The Wilton depot will anchor freight corridors between Sydney, Wollongong, Newcastle, and Canberra, and is expected to be operational some time in late 2027 with an initial capacity for 50 trucks, before expanding to 200 electric trucks over time.
NET also has plans to build electric road freight depots that connect Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney, Canberra, and Brisbane by 2031.
This all came before NET finished the Australian financial year by securing an initial $5 million equity raise which will allow the company to fast-track its Rapid Deployment Project, which aims to roll out twenty electric prime movers and six mobile ultra-fast charging units across NSW freight corridors before the end of 2026.
“Today’s announcements are just the start,” said Daniel Bleakley, the co-CEO of New Energy Transport.
“We’re racing to meet a surge in demand from some of Australia’s largest transport buyers for electric road freight. New Energy Transport is building the foundation of a vertically integrated electric freight network connecting the entire east coast and beyond. Momentum is growing, with Volvo Trucks and Unilever helping to lead the charge.”
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