WA-based transporter Centurion recently commissioned milestone two of Australia’s first fully off-grid, 100-per cent renewable energy, battery electric truck project, marking a major milestone in sustainable freight transport.
The company’s Perth Airport depot operates two charging sites, named North and South. The North charging site was commissioned back in February and the South charging site is now live from earlier this month, adding a further 10 Mercedes-Benz eActros 300 battery-electric trucks to service the Perth metropolitan area. This brings the Hazelmere fleet to 30 electric trucks, all fuelled by onsite green energy supply.
The South site energy infrastructure includes 2.2MW of rooftop solar, 3.44MWh of battery storage, 75kW and 150kW chargers, and a back-up generator operating on hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO). The project has been developed in partnership with the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) under the Future Fuels Fund program.
The overall project includes 30 Mercedes-Benz eActros 300 battery electric trucks – 25 rigid trucks and five prime movers, 4.4MW of rooftop solar and 10.3MWh of battery storage. They are charged using 15 dual-port slow and fast chargers and fully off-grid charging infrastructure with backup generation using HVO.
Centurion’s $36 million off-grid fleet electrification project includes 30 Mercedes-Benz eActros 300 battery electric trucks, 4.4MW of rooftop solar and 10.3MWh of battery storage
“The project is now fully operational, and it marks a significant milestone in progressing our decarbonisation journey,” Centurion CEO Justin Cardaci (pictured above) says.
“Completing this important infrastructure milestone and having the full electric truck fleet operational is a great outcome for Centurion. It shows that with the right partnerships and investment, sustainable freight solutions are achievable today.
“We’re not only reducing emissions but also providing electric trucks fuelled by green energy that can deliver a high-quality reliable service for our customers.”
Daimler Truck Australia Pacific President and CEO, Daniel Whitehead, says he’s “thrilled” to see 10 more Mercedes-Benz eActros trucks join Centurion’s off-grid solar fleet, joining the 20 units that have already been delivering for customers and producing zero exhaust emissions.
“Day one of Centurion’s 30-strong fully-electric eActros truck fleet marks an important milestone for sustainable logistics in Australia. This is a remarkable achievement and I would like to congratulate Justin Cardaci and his team at Centurion for making it a reality,” he adds.
The $36 million project was delivered in partnership with Daimler Truck, Cape Dunstans, Switch Batteries and bp Australia, and made possible through $15.8 million in funding from ARENA.
This project demonstrates how industry collaboration, renewable energy and innovation can drive meaningful change in Australia’s transport and logistics sector, reducing emissions while maintaining operational performance.
The next step for the project is to optimise the integration of the green energy and electric truck fleet into Centurion’s wider operations at the Perth Airport depot. This project will generate significant learnings, and Centurion in conjunction with ARENA will be seeking to share this knowledge across the industry.