APM Terminals Elizabeth, a division of shipping giant A.P. Moller-Maersk, is dipping its corporate toe into electrification. The company will invest $5 million in its Electrification Pilot Project, including a $1.4 million Diesel Emissions Reduction Act (DERA) grant from the EPA.

The DERA grant has facilitated the replacement of seven diesel terminal tractors with new Mafi T 230e Electric-Terminal-Tractors (eTTs), which support both plug-in and wireless charging.

The terminal has installed nine Heliox 60-180 kW DC fast charging stations, as well as an InductEV wireless 150 kW DC fast charging station. The eTTs can operate for 16-20 hours after just two hours of charging time. The power used to charge the electric tractors is sourced from renewable energy through a power purchase agreement.

The pilot program, conducted in collaboration with the Leonardo Academy, will study key performance and operational aspects of using the electric trucks to test technology maturity and ensure operational readiness for the terminal.

“The project wouldn’t have been possible without the funding assistance and support from the EPA,” said Henrik Kristensen, Managing Director of APM Terminals Elizabeth. “APM Terminals has set a goal to reach net zero in 2040 [and one of the tools is] the use of electric container handling equipment. Collaboration in this area is vital to accelerate the study, scale and adoption of standardized solutions that will ultimately reduce costs for industry to decarbonize.”

Source: APM Terminals