FedEx Express plans to nearly double the amount of territory 20 of its electric delivery trucks cover with one charge by using hydrogen fuel cell range extenders provided by Plug Power Inc. Currently, electric delivery trucks are limited to traveling about 80 miles per charge.
This $3 million project is funded by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and includes Smith Electric Vehicles among the project partners. The resulting hybrid vehicles will be powered by lithium-ion batteries and a 10-kilowatt hydrogen fuel cell system based on Plug Power’s GenDrive Series 1000 product architecture.
Plug Power hopes to demonstrate that range extenders can result in an approximately 35 to 40% decrease in fuel expenses, when compared to diesel trucks.
“Only 1% of these vehicles are electric today; we think that this range extender provides the added distance and quick refueling capabilities needed to really grow this market,” said Andy Marsh, Plug Power CEO.
