Ghanapolitics: The Driven/Sophie Vorrath: Melbourne council dumps fossil fuels with first electric tipper truck

Friday 27 September 2019

The Driven/Sophie Vorrath: Melbourne council dumps fossil fuels with first electric tipper truck

The first 100% electric tipper truck in Australia has been deployed by Melbourne’s Yarra City Council, allowing the exploration of transitioning its garbage and recycling collection fleet away from fossil fuels.
Made by Victoria’s Sea Electric , the tipper truck is built on an Isuzu body using a Sea Electric drivetrain and 100kWh battery.
With 108kW maximum power and 1,000Nm torque, the tipper truck has a range of up to 275km and can be recharged using an on-bard three-phase charger to 80% in five hours.
SEA Electric regional director for Oceania Glen Walker says that trucks like this are perfect for urban council runs, and builds can be customised to most truck bodies according to needs.

Yarra Council joins fellow Victorian council, City of Casey, in the introduction of electric trucks which save residents from the annoyance of being woken in the early hours by the rumble of a diesel engine.

“Our urban environments are becoming more and more frantic, filled with noise and pollution”, said Walker in a note by email.
“This electric tipper reverses the trend and instills a piece of tranquility and cleanliness.”
Yarra mayor Danae Bosler says that because Yarra City Council is powered by renewables, the truck will not only have zero tailpipe emissons but also no emissions associated with charging of a coal-powered grid.
“Electric vehicles are the way of the future. A handful of councils have electric waste trucks but our new electric tipper is an Australian first,” she said in a note by email.
“Yarra Council’s assets and facilities are powered by 100% renewable energy, meaning this will be a genuinely zero-emissions vehicle.
“We’re also exploring how we can transition to electric rubbish and recycling trucks over the next five years. This is just one is just one of the ways we’re acting in response to the climate emergency.
Electric vehicles also have significantly lower running costs than diesel, which means that although their purchase price is often higher the total cost of ownership is comparative.
“The City of Yarra has made a wise and progressive choice with this electric tipper truck”, said Walker.

“The drivers thank you because they will end their day more refreshed, the rate payers thank you because the electric tipper is competitive in cost over the whole of life compared with a diesel, and the environment thanks you”.
Until a full transition can be implemented, Yarra Council’s electric tipper means at least one less noisy, polluting truck is off the road.
“As a council we are in a unique position to use our purchasing power to make sustainable choices, and we’re proud to be supporting the local electric vehicle industry,” Bosler said.

Bridie Schmidt

Bridie Schmidt is lead reporter for The Driven, sister site of Renew Economy. She specialises in writing about new technology, as well as using her technical skills in managing our websites.