Joint media release: Putting cleaner trucks on Sydney roads

The Hon Anthony Albanese MP, Prime Minister of Australia

The Hon Chris Bowen MP, Minister for Climate Change and Energy

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese today launched a fleet of 43 electric trucks on Sydney roads, marking another milestone in the Government’s Driving the Nation program with Minister Chris Bowen, the CEO of Team Global Express, Christine Holgate, and the global CEO of Volvo, Martin Lundstedt. 

These high-tech trucks are the first of 60 purchased by Team Global Express as part of their $44.3 million Depot of the Future project including 36 Volvo FL Electric trucks and 24 Daimler Fuso eCanters. 

The Albanese Government has contributed $20.1 million through the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA), to get this great project on the road. 

Transport already accounts for one-fifth of Australia's emissions, and trucks and buses are responsible for a quarter of these transport emissions. 

As more people are choosing to buy their groceries and other supplies online, driving strong growth in parcel delivery, the switch to electric trucks will help in decarbonising the transport sector. 

This project is replacing a third of Team Global Express’s fleet in Western Sydney with electric vehicles which are cleaner and cheaper to run – and will reduce air pollution and noise. 

Team Global Express has also upgraded its Bungarribee depot to incorporate advanced EV charging infrastructure powered by a 1 MW battery storage system that uses 400 kW of energy from onsite solar panels. 

Powering their operations with onsite solar will reduce pressure on the grid, while cutting energy bills and reducing transport emissions. 

Through this project, existing delivery drivers have been able to upskill – receiving training to use the electric trucks. The lessons learnt from this project will be shared acorss the trucking industry to help build up capability and scale our electric heavy vehicle fleet.

 The $20.1 million ARENA grant is part of the government’s Driving the Nation fund, through which we have invested $130 million in EV fleets, designed to invest in cheaper and cleaner transport, which is also helping build a nationwide EV fast-charging network to link Australia’s cities and regions. 

Quotes attributable to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese: 

“We already have thousands of electric buses and electric cars on the road. This Australian-first project will help modernise our truck fleet, cut down on emissions, save fuel costs and reduce air pollution.

“This also delivers on our election commitment through the Driving the Nation Fund into cutting transport emissions and rolling out charging infrastructure across Australia. 

“We pride ourselves on working with companies like Team Global Express and Volvo to seize the opportunities that come with embracing electric heavy vehicles.”

Quotes attributable to Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen: 

“These trucks won’t just be the cleanest and quietest delivery trucks on Sydney’s streets – they’ll be the cheapest to run, including maintenance, a huge expense for any logistics business. 

“With these trucks reducing noise, air pollution and running costs, the Albanese Government is proud to be delivering on solutions that are good for Western Sydney and the broader climate and economy.”