Strap an RV diesel generator onto a battery-powered truck made to move cargo containers around ports and warehouses, and save yourself a bundle on fuel costs, while cleaning up the air in the bargain.
To be sure, the technology behind the new hybrid terminal truck from Capacity of Texas isn't that simple. But it's proven itself effective enough to gain customers including Walmart, PepsiCo and the Port of Houston.
The Longview, Texas-based maker of heavy vehicles expects to sell up to 150 of its new PHETTs, or Pluggable Hybrid Electrical Terminal Trucks, next year, according to Phillip Ford, company president.
"Instead of taking a golf cart and scaling it up, we took a locomotive and scaled it down," he said. Train locomotives have used diesel engines to power electric motors for decades, and General Electric and others are seeking to improve on that technology (see GE's Green Locomotives).
The PHETT is similar to General Motors' Chevy Volt, in that its fossil-fueled generator charges the batteries, rather than playing a part in propelling the vehicle. It can also plug in for charging when it's not in use, leading to a roughly 50 percent reduction in fuel use compared it its diesel-powered brethren, Ford said.
The PHETT also has significantly lower emissions, he added – a critical factor for ports under pressure to reduce their share of air pollution. Ports across the country are experimenting with electric or hybrid heavy vehicles to meet emissions reduction goals (see Balqon's Electric Truck: 90-Mile Range, Fully Loaded and Hybrid Seaport Tractors Aim for Idling Fuel Time, Emission Savings).
The PHETT does cost about twice as much as an analogous diesel-powered tractor – about $170,000 versus $85,000, Ford said. But the money they can save on fuel costs – as well as reduced maintenance costs on the transmission-less, electric-powered traction motors – can pay that extra cost back in about five years, he said.
Customers that can secure various grants and incentives for switching to cleaner vehicles could speed up that payback to months, he added.
