Nikola Corp., via its HYLA brand, marked the commercial launch of the Nikola hydrogen fuel-cell electric vehicle at its manufacturing facility in Coolidge, Ariz., during a ceremony attended by fleet customers, dealers from Nikola’s sales and service network, and other stakeholders.
“As we head into the fourth quarter, we are focused on delivering our trucks at scale and securing our position as pioneers in the hydrogen refueling ecosystem to support our customers,” says Steve Girsky, Nikola’s president and CEO.
Nikola’s hydrogen fuel cell electric truck features a range of up to 500 miles and an estimated fueling time as low as 20 minutes, depending on the refueling system. The vehicle is expected to have among the longest ranges of all commercially available zero-tailpipe-emission Class 8 trucks, with versatile applications ranging from drayage and intermodal to metro-regional truckload and less-than-truckload to certain specialized hauling use cases.
Nikola and its dealers have received 223 non-binding orders for its hydrogen fuel cell electric trucks from 23 customers, the company says. Notable fleet operators such as J.B. Hunt, AJR Trucking, Biagi Bros. and TTSI are among its list of customers.
The Coolidge manufacturing facility features a mixed-model production line capable of manufacturing both hydrogen fuel cell and battery-electric trucks, with an annual production capacity of approximately 2,400 trucks across three shifts.
Progress is also being made on the fuel cell power module assembly line in Coolidge, scheduled for completion in the fourth quarter, with Bosch supplying the modules.