$100m all-electric cold chain promise

USA: Thermo King says it will invest more than $100m over the next three years to deliver a fully electric product in every segment of the cold chain by 2023.

The company’s all-electric portfolio, branded Evolve, will include electric refrigeration solutions for truck, trailer, rail, air and marine transport in the North America, Latin America and Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) regions. 

Providing electric solutions for buildings, homes and refrigerated transportation is part of Trane Technologies’ overall approach to reducing carbon emissions in the industries it serves, meeting its Gigaton Challenge for a more sustainable future, and supporting net-zero cities.

Thermo King says that as new products are added to the Evolve portfolio, electric solutions will be available in every cold chain segment in EMEA by 2023, and in the Americas by 2025.

“The evolve portfolio builds on our ongoing efforts to help customers reduce environmental impact and meet their sustainability goals as they transition fleets and stay ahead of future regulation,” said Paul Camuti, chief technology and sustainability officer for Trane Technologies.

The company already offers fully electric products such as the E-200 for middle and last-mile delivery, and the TE-18 and Athenia all-electric HVAC units for public bus transit. 

Successfully launched in EMEA in 2020, the Advancer trailer unit is said to be 30% more fuel-efficient than the market average and can operate on a variety of power sources such as shore power, hybrid, holdover battery, and axle generator. 

In the Americas region, the enhanced electric architecture on the connected Precedent trailer unit leverages shore power and will undergo field trials with customers later this year. These innovations will pave the way for all-electric zero-emission trailer refrigeration units in both regions, Thermo King says

“Our expertise in electrification has positioned Thermo King as a trusted partner to respected industry leaders such as Isuzu, Tesco, Mercedes-Benz and technology companies such as ELMS, Gatik, and BPW who continue to find new ways to innovate the cold chain,” said Karin De Bondt, president for Thermo King Americas. “Through these strategic partnerships, we are able to further our advancements of sustainable power solutions and electrified product offerings that meet customer, regulatory and environmental requirements in our industry and our world.”