Battery storage specialist Zenobē said it was looking to introduce a new EV shared charging infrastructure model in the UK following its launch in Australia.
The company has partnered with Australia’s largest supermarket chain, Woolworths, to provide its truck-specific, electric-vehicle-as-a-service (EVaaS) model, which involves 60 fully electric trucks being leased to the supermarket and the development of an off-site multi-user charging facility.
Zenobē said fleet electrification presented significant operational and financial uncertainties, such as securing sufficient power, installing and maintaining charging infrastructure, replacing batteries and keeping services reliable and efficient.
It added that its EVaaS offer financed and delivered each of these elements, including the long-term operation and maintenance of the infrastructure, and removed risk for its customers for a monthly fee.
Under the EVaaS model, Woolworths has the freedom to select R&M routines for their electric fleet without being tied into a contract with the original manufacturer.
Zenobē has already introduced the concept within the UK bus and coach sector and it is keen to roll out the service to hauliers in this country too:
“While the UK transport sector has made great progress in recent years on decarbonisation, this hasn’t yet translated to trucks and haulage at the scale that is required,” said Zenobē founder and director Nicholas Beatty.
“Zenobē has a strong track record of working with governments and partners across the globe to deliver transport decarbonisation projects that maximise green investment – and this new model would go a long way to boosting the UK’s efforts to reduce emissions.”