Sysco Corp., a major food distributor, says it will be building an electric vehicle hub at its Riverside, Calif., distribution center to support the deployment of 2,800 electric trucks in its U.S. fleet by 2030.
Currently, Sysco operates 11 Freightliner battery-electric eCascadia tractors at its Riverside facility, and the company expects to deploy 20 total by this summer. Once completed, the facility’s EV infrastructure will include 40 dual-port DC fast-charging stations in support of 40 electric Class 8 trucks and 40 electric refrigerated trailers. The Riverside site will also feature 4 MWh of battery storage and will increase its solar power generation by an additional 1.5 MW.
“We are excited to showcase Sysco’s work to build our first electric vehicle hub,” says Marie Robinson, Sysco’s chief supply chain officer. “This is a massive collaborative effort that has required years of planning. We’re grateful to our many partners on this journey for their vision, innovation and leadership in bringing the transportation and infrastructure technology to market to support this project.”
Sysco announced in May 2021 its intention to deploy nearly 800 battery electric Freightliner eCascadia Class 8 tractors by 2026. Houston Freightliner is supporting this rollout.
Additional Sysco partners for the hub initiative include ConMet, InCharge Energy, ABB E-mobility, Black & Veatch, Carrier Transicold North America, GNA, Stem, Vanguard, W&B Service Company, and bp pulse.
Sysco plans to electrify 35% of its U.S. tractor fleet by 2030.