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Shipper alliance orders 2,500 electric Class 8 trucks, mostly Tesla Semis

ZET SCALE, an alliance of shippers, carriers and truck makers, has commitments from its members to buy 2,500 battery-electric Class 8 trucks. That equals the total number on US roads today. Tesla is the main supplier.

By Greener Numbers Editorial Team · Published September 23, 2026 · Updated 9/24/2026

ZET SCALE (Zero-Emission Truck Shipper-Carrier Alliance Leading Electrification) announced this week that its members have committed to buy 2,500 battery-electric Class 8 trucks. That is equal to the total number of those trucks in the US today. The alliance's goal is 10,000.

Tesla was picked as the primary maker "after evaluating price, range, charging capability, and production capacity." Kenworth, Volvo and RIDE will supply the rest. The trucks will go to ten freight hubs: Los Angeles, Stockton, Bakersfield, Seattle/Tacoma, Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, Chicago, Atlanta, and Newark/New York. There is no delivery timeline yet.

The group buys in bulk to get lower prices. Partners include Catalyst Mobility (formerly CALSTART), the Smart Freight Center, Microsoft and PepsiCo. ZET Financial places the orders and runs a lease program that takes resale-value risk off fleets' books.

Price is still the hurdle. Electric truck prices in the US rose 32% in recent years while they fell 27% in Europe, according to the ICCT. California just passed SB 1213 to make zero-emission truck pricing more transparent, and seven states have released guidelines for electric truck price reporting.

Official source: CleanTechnica ↗