American automaker Nikola proudly announced the commercial launch of its hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle truck through its HYLA brand. According to the press release, the model is a Class 8 truck with one of the “longest ranges” among the available options in the market.
Nikola Launch Event highlights
Numerous relevant personalities and businesses attended the commercial launch ceremony of the Nikola truck at its “state-of-the-art” factory in Coolidge, Arizona. Some of them were government officials, authorized sales and service network dealers, Phoenix business and community leaders, and the Nikola team.
Nikola executives and the Arizona Commerce Authority President/Chief expressed their delight with the achievement through their respective remarks.
“Today, we mark the official commercial launch of our advanced technology hydrogen fuel cell electric trucks into the North American marketplace. It’s a testament to the relentless `can do’ attitude of our team and is a step closer to realizing our vision of sustainable and efficient transportation. As we head into the fourth quarter, we are focused on delivering our trucks at scale and securing our position as pioneers in the hydrogen refueling ecosystem to support our customers.”
Steve Girsky, Nikola President and CEO
Moreover, Nikola also held ruck and hydrogen demos, sustainability impact overview presentations, manufacturing line tours and informal technology Q&As with its engineers, HYLA ecosystem discussion, and the Nikola human-machine interface system introduction.
About the Nikola FCEV truck
The hydrogen fuel cell e-truck generates a maximum driving range of 500 miles. Nikola claims that it has an estimated fueling time of only 20 minutes. It has a maximum continuous output of 536 horsepower (400 kW), while its instantaneous output is 773 hp (575 kW).
It also features two battery packs with an output of 164 kWh. Meanwhile, its top speed is 70 miles per hour. You can access the full specifications of the Nikola truck here.
“This truck is expected to have among the longest ranges of all commercially available zero tailpipe emission Class 8 trucks, with versatile applications ranging from drayage and intermodal to metro-regional truckload and less-than-truckload to certain specialized hauling use cases.”
Nikola
Incentives for Fuel Cell Electric Truck buyers
The press release also indicated that buyers can access various incentives from both the state and the federal government to aid them in their purchase. These incentives are as follows:
- California Air Resources Board Hybrid and Zero-Emission Truck and Bus Voucher Incentive Project – $120,000 to $288,000 per truck
- California Innovative Small e-Fleet program – $240,000 to $408,000 per truck
- New York Truck Voucher Incentive Program
- Canada’s Incentives for Medium- and Heavy-Duty Zero-Emission Vehicles Program (iMHZEV)
- British Columbia’s Clean BC Go Electric Rebates
- Inflation Reduction Act’s commercial vehicle tax credit – $40,000 per vehicle
Nikola’s presence in the state of Arizona will undoubtedly aid the local government in its goal of achieving carbon neutrality in the transportation sector. Apart from that, it will also boost the state’s economy with such major operations.
“We are proud to celebrate the launch of Nikola’s innovative hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle production facility in Coolidge. Nikola’s investment in Arizona’s electric vehicle supply chain and their partnership with leading suppliers are driving further economic growth. We look forward to supporting Nikola’s success as the company continues to shape the future of transportation from Coolidge.”
Sandra Watson, President and CEO of the Arizona Commerce Authority
See Also:
- Nikola to lay off 270 employees to optimize its zero-emissions trucks production and focus on North America
- Nikola discontinues e-truck production after weak Q1 2023 financial results
- Nikola to be the first US truck maker to employ 9PlusDrive to Class 8 e-trucks
- Nikola and KeyState to collaborate on hydrogen supply
- Nikola plans to bring 60 hydrogen stations by 2026, aided by IRA and state-level incentives
The Nikola e-truck has already gained a total of 223 non-binding orders from 23 customers, including J.B. Hunt, AJR Trucking, Biagi Bros., and TTSI. The company expects the Coolidge factory to hit an annual production output of about 2,400 trucks.
You can access the commercial launch event of the Nikola hydrogen FCEV truck here.
