Finally, EPA Approves Tesla Semi for Delivery to Customers

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approved the delivery of Tesla Semi to customers, a signal for the electric semi truck to enter the stream of commerce.

EPA issued the Certificates of Conformity. That means the vehicle, which Tesla introduced in 2017 as the "future of trucking," has met the regulatory standards on emissions and fuel economy.

The certificate, Teslarati quoting EPA said, is valid for "one model year year production."

Start of Production

The EPA decision was the license Tesla had been waiting for two years after it announced the plan to start the production of the electric semi-truck. Several issues, such as battery and other parts of the Semi had reportedly hindered the production.

While it announced in 2020 the plan to start the production of the Semi, the company did not apply for a Certificate of Conformity based on EPA's list of heavy-duty vehicles it has approved since then.

But on Sept. 29, EPA confirmed to Teslarati it had given Tesla the green light for its Semi to hit the road.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk tweeted on Oct. 7 that the electric car manufacturer will start producing the Semi for delivery to PepsiCo on Dec. 1.

PepsiCo confirmed that the company would be the first to get Tesla's Semi to join its fleet of delivery trucks.

The American multinational food and beverage company said it would utilize the electric semi-trucks for its factory in Sacramento and the Frito-Lay in Modesto, California, Reuters reports.

The Semi acquisition is part of PepsiCo's goal to reduce costs on fuel as well as emissions. PepsiCo had reserved 100 of the Semi.

Even without PepsiCo, Tesla already has the right to produce and deliver its electric semi-truck to other customers anywhere after EPA's approval.

Although Tesla had announced it would start the production and delivery in the past, Musk had the propensity to do that. A delay is most unlikely this time.

EV Companies With Big Plans in 2022

The electric vehicle market size was placed at $670 million in 2021, with projected growth by 23.5 percent for the next 10 years.

GreenBiz has come up with a list of companies vying with Tesla to get their share in the EV market. Here are some of these companies:

1. BrightDrop. General Motors (GM) joined the EV market after it launched BrightDrop in 2022, a subsidiary aiming to support sustainability initiatives in the logistics and delivery sector. The company had clinched a contract with Walmart for some 5,000 EV600 trucks and electric vans. Fedex had also ordered from GM some 2,000 EV vans.

2. Electric Last Mile Solutions (ELMS) is also poised to become a major player in the EV logistics and support sector. The North American company has already started developing its own fleet of all-electric delivery vans this year. It is focusing, however, on a particular niche for contractors, couriers, and other businesses. ELMS

3. Kenworth is also in the fray. In January, the company unveiled its own EV truck, the much-touted T680E. It's not Kenworth's first hauler powered by a battery. But it is the largest and heaviest model for the company based in Kirkland, Washington.

Tesla is not the only player in the sustainable EV truck and van sector. The approval it has secured from EPA would certainly make the sector more crowded, with each company trying to elbow out each for their share of the EV van and truck market.