Nikola is shaking up the transportation industry with their zero-emissions hydrogen powered truck, the Nikola Tre. At a recent event they announced Hyla – their new global brand – and unveiled ambitious plans for the coming year, such as breaking ground on their first hydrogen fuel hub in Buckeye, Arizona. The company believes their solutions will resolve what has been called ‘the chicken and egg problem’ of infrastructure availability.
Later this year, the Nikola Tre FCEV will be hitting the market with impressive specs. It boasts a 500-mile range for long trips and can be fueled in as little as 20 minutes. With 536 horsepower and 12,500 lb-ft of torque under its hood, it also has a state-of-the art regenerative braking system to ensure safety on roads at all speeds. Its two high resolution screens are now connected to numerous software features like speed limiting technology plus assigned drivers that can be monitored remotely using diagnostics or an app! Alpha models have been tested by several companies including Anheuser Busch and Walmart while Biagi Bros is expected to take delivery of 15 vehicles during Q4 next year – racking up over 100k miles annually.
Bruce Kurtt, Nikola’s senior vice president, sales and operations gave some rapid-fire answers to some of the most frequently asked questions that their sales team gets about purchasing a Nikola FCEV.
• Cost? “It’s going to cost a little more than a diesel truck.”
• Fuel prices? “Guaranteed price for an extended period of time, rather than the rapid fluctuations of diesel prices.”
• Maintenance? “Less maintenance.”
• Warranty? “Covers all new components and systems.
• Safety? “Did far more testing than required.”
• Financing? “We can do that. Incentives, we can do that.”
With its Hyla brand, Nikola has a bold vision to make hydrogen fuel-cell trucks more accessible. To do so, they have plans to deliver up 300 TPD of the precious commodity through cooperation with established partners via projects already in progress, which are referenced below.
• Buckeye, Arizona: Hydrogen Production Hub will see phased development of up to 150 metric-TPD.
• Plug Power: multi-region offtake agreement of up to 125 metric-TPD
• Terre Haute, Indiana: Wabash Valley Resources: 50 metric-TPD
• Crossfield, Alberta, Canada: TC Energy – 60 metric-TPD
• Clinton County, Pennsylvania: KeyState – 100 metric-TPD
Construction of the Phoenix Hydrogen Hub is set to begin this year and be complete by 2024, with a first phase capacity for 30 metric-tons. If operated relative to small fleets at 1.5 tons per day, it would significantly reduce our carbon footprint, replacing 700 gallons of diesel every day and cutting 2.4 metric tons in emissions annually.
Hyla is leading the charge to provide clean hydrogen for FCEV customers nationwide. With a bold plan of establishing 60 hydrogen-fueling stations by 2026, along with 3 in California this year and a mobile fueler solution set for launch in 2023.
Nikola Chairman of the Board Steve Girsky opened the event with a story, “When I joined GM in 2009, their response to Tesla was ‘It’s a bunch of laptop batteries, don’t worry about it.’ This gave Tesla a 10-year head start, while traditional truck companies gave lip service to zero-emissions transportation and Nikola acted to change the world.”
Source: thetruckersreport
