FedEX announced today its latest move to accelerate the electrification of its massive delivery vehicle fleet by securing 1,000 electric vans from Chanje.
Last year, we reported on Chanje, a Chinese EV startup, when it launched a commercial all-electric van in the US.
Earlier this year, they partnered with Ryder to service their vehicles. Ryder also ordered a large fleet of 500 all-electric vans to build an electric rental fleet.
Now it looks like they will need to expand that fleet because out of the 1,000 V8100 electric delivery vehicles that FedEX is getting, 100 will be directly purchased from the company and 900 will be leased from Ryder.
FedEx said that they plan to use the electric vehicles as part of their FedEx Express fleet “for commercial and residential pick-up and delivery services in the United States.”
Mitch Jackson, FedEx Chief Sustainability Officer, commented on the announcement:
“FedEx continually seeks new ways to maximize operational efficiency, minimize impacts and find innovative solutions through the company’s Reduce, Replace, Revolutionize approach to sustainability. Our investment in these vehicles is part of our commitment to that approach of serving our customers and connecting the world responsibly and resourcefully.”
As we previously reported, Chanje claimed that its medium-duty panel van was capable of a range of 65 miles with a full 6,000-lb payload and up to 100 miles of range with a 3,000-lb payload when they first unveiled it.
The company has since updated the range to “150 miles” on its website and the cargo space went from 580 cu.ft at the announcement of the van to now 675 cu.ft.
Chanje seems to be focusing on commercial fleets and therefore, it hasn’t released any pricing information for the van, which is manufactured by FDG in Hangzhou, China, but they are also working on an assembly plant in the US.
It’s one of several electrification efforts from FedEX. The giant logistic company also ordered 20 Tesla Semi electric trucks to use in its freight fleet.
Here are a few images of the Chanje V8100 electric delivery vehicle:
