Farm Is First Customer for Electrified Trailer Developer Range
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Electrified dry van and refrigerated trailer developer Range Energy’s first publicly announced customer is set to be Petaluma Egg Farm, which serves grocery stores across Northern California.
Petaluma will buy at least 10 trailer kits from Mountain View, Calif.-based startup Range, with deployment set to begin in 2025. The trailers aim to reduce diesel consumption through an e-axle, battery pack and smart kingpin.
Prior to making the purchase, Petaluma conducted a trial in July 2024, testing a refrigerated trailer equipped with Range’s ePTS system. The trials covered routes ranging from 100 to 440 miles, as well as city distribution operations with more than 15 delivery stops.
Range said the trailers consistently delivered up to 70% mile-per-gallon improvements across routes.
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“Climate-smart agriculture and consideration for our community are at the heart of [Petaluma], from our egg production all the way to the safe, efficient and reliable transport of our products. Range is a cutting-edge solution that enables us to stay true to our environmental stewardship while also seeing the cost-saving benefits on our bottom line,” said Jordan Mahrt, owner of the farm.
“Range’s trailers are a future-proof investment for our fleet operations, and allow us to continue making a positive impact on the environment, our customers and the Bay Area,” he added.
Range, which initially focused on dry van applications, is expanding its refrigerated product development.
In May, the company teamed up with refrigerated freight equipment giant Thermo King. The partners will test Range trailers in combination with various hybrid trailer refrigeration units and electric TRUs in trials in the second half of 2024 and in 2025.
Dry van trailer testing of Range’s system, which involves hitching to a tractor and separately to a trailer, is also continuing, including with DB Schenker.
DB Schenker (North America) ranks No. 25 on the Transport Topics Top 100 list of the largest logistics companies in North America. On Sept. 13, DSV announced it had entered into an agreement to purchase DB Schenker, creating the world’s largest freight forwarder.
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