Einride, the Sweden-based freight technology company, announced on Wednesday that it will deploy a new charging network in the U.S., starting with locations near the Port of Los Angeles.
The first Einride Station, which includes electric truck charging capability as well as a maintenance center and lounge area for drivers, will be placed near the Port of Los Angeles to support Einride customer A.P. Møller – Maersk (OCTUS: AMKBY). It is scheduled to open in 2023 and will eventually be opened to non-Einride customers. A single Einride Station can support up to 200 vehicles.
Einride Stations are already operational in Sweden.
The company also announced a new electric truck model and that its intelligent freight mobility platform, Saga, is available for general use regardless of whether the user is an Einride customer.
“We can unlock a truly sustainable, resilient future when we move away from thinking about transportation just as a siloed sector of A to B. To reimagine shipping means thinking about the entirety of the ecosystem, which has been the idea of Einride since day one,” said Robert Falck, founder and CEO of Einride, during a livestreamed news event. “Today we were able to not only share our growth and continued innovation that is being implemented, but clearly showcase how other shippers can take these same insights and apply our ecosystem to their supply chains — today.”
Einride inked a deal with Maersk in March. Under terms of the agreement, Maersk will deploy 300 Einride Class 8 electric trucks (E-trucks) over five years, with the first delivery taking place in 2023. Maersk will use the vehicles in its North American warehousing, distribution and transportation business. The companies estimate the vehicles will move more than 1 million shipments during the life of the contract.
Einride’s E-truck will aid Maersk in its goal to reach net-zero emissions and offer 100% green solutions for its customers by 2040. It expects to eventually charge its entire fleet with 100% renewable electricity.
The agreement includes Einride’s capacity-as-a-service and software-as-a-service offerings. The E-trucks will operate within Einride’s Saga data-driven operating system, which also includes charging stations and connectivity services. In all, 150 charging stations are expected to be installed to support the deployment.
The E-truck comes in two configurations: a 4-by-2 tractor-trailer version capable of hauling up to 33 pallets and 24 tons and a rigid 4-by-2 configuration with up to 18-pallet capacity and either 9- or 16-ton capacity depending on application.
Maersk has been ramping up its overall transportation offerings, moving away from serving only maritime customers to build an end-to-end transportation network. In 2021, the company acquired several entities, including a $545 million acquisition of logistics provider Performance Team and its 58 U.S. facilities in April 2021, a $1.8 billion purchase of Pilot Freight, and technology provider Visible SCM.
GE Appliances is also testing Einride electric trucks, with plans for 12 of them to be operational at facilities in Georgia, Kentucky and Tennessee.
The Gen 2 Rigid Large
Einride also unveiled its next-generation remote truck, the Gen 2 Rigid Large. The straight truck has a larger cargo hold, updated optics form sensors and updated maximum speed with night vision capabilities. The first Gen 2 trucks will hit roadways in 2023.
Along with the new truck are updates to Einride’s Remote Interface, which helps control the vehicles. The new interface features more adjustable settings and monitor setup that ensures optimal remote operator comfort, as well as a new flat pack construction allowing for easier manufacturing, scalability and setup on site.
Saga updates
Einride Saga provides users the ability to generate and view operational key performance indicators, register and track progress to emission targets and get actionable operational insights for all shipping touchpoints, using data from across the user’s ecosystem.
“As an industry leader in electric fleet operations, we have the unique advantage of leveraging our experience to make electric solutions more accessible,” said Linnéa Kornehed Falck, CMO, deputy CEO and founder at Einride. “Right now, making the transition to electric is vital and needs to be made easy and efficient, which is available today through Einride Saga as it enables our larger grid ecosystem to be more resilient.”
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