Many consider Tesla as the most advanced company in the world today in terms of electronic vehicles (EV) industry. Now the company is taking it to another level as the Tesla Semi, its first all-electric, battery-powered Class 8 semi-truck, will see production starting next year.
Despite currently having four available car models in the market, the company has taken over more than 20 percent of the overall sales of EVs around the world according to Navigant Research, and has sold over 1 million units of their car models. With the original announcement of the Tesla Semi four years ago, sales are expected to go even higher as companies and businesses may utilize this upcoming semi-truck for their operations.
Recently, Tesla received pre-order reservations of 150 Tesla Semi Trucks from the Pride Group Enterprises or PGE, which is a company that deals with businesses on equipment, rental, leasing, logistics, and sales industry. Already viewed as one of the notable bulk orders for the upcoming Semi Truck, PGE also considers having a room for 500 additional orders of the Tesla Semi for their business operations. Tesla confirmed that deposits for the first 150 orders was already sent and settled.
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Tesla Semi Being an Electronic Vehicle
One of the advantages of the Tesla Semi trucks is it being an EV. Most trucking businesses like PGE who rely on the efficiency and use of their delivery vehicles, and mostly on trucks, expenses to continue the operations of the trucks are becoming bigger. Auke Hoekstra, an electronic vehicle expert and a researcher at the Eindhoven University of Technology mentioned in an interview that his research in the Netherlands concludes that trucks such as the Semi travels at a rate of 750 kilometers per day 'at the very most', while covering just short distances.
He also mentioned that more expenses are being made if a company would wish their businesses to reach farther. Additional gasoline fees, extended or overtime pays for employees involved within the deliveries, all of these could make the companies' expenses go beyond their allotted budget for its day to day operations.
Yet this is where Tesla Semi Trucks' strengths could be utilized. Being an electric vehicle could save up for the gasoline fees, with its all-electric battery-powered feature where it could travel up to 500 miles or 805 kilometers when fully charged, or up to 400 miles or 640 kilometers when charged on a rate of just 80 percent in 30 minutes. In the recently held European Battery Conference, Tesla co-founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Elon Musk announced that the company is already in the developing stage and close to production part of the Tesla Semi, aiming that it could outdo their desired performance of a thousand kilometers per full charge.
Once out in the market, the Tesla Semi could pave the way for the possibilities of having more EV trucks in the future. Establishing a solid mark for Tesla could embark not just a successful run for the company, but for the whole trucking industry as well.
