Battery maker Octillion Power Systems today announced it will supply advanced lithium-ion batteries to Brazilian manufacturer FNM (Fábrica Nacional de Mobilidades) for the production of 1,000 electric trucks for beverage maker Ambev.

FNM will produce 16-ton electric trucks, developed in full collaboration with Agrale, to be used by Ambev to deliver beverages throughout South America. A subsidiary of Anheuser-Busch InBev, Ambev announced that it will deploy the 1,000 electric delivery vehicles by the end of 2021.

“Ambev's order sends a strong signal that fleet electrification has arrived globally,” said Paul Beach, president of Octillion Power Systems, a Tier 1 battery supplier based in Northern California. “Commercial electric vehicles now have a total cost of ownership that is roughly the same as diesel vehicles, and that’s leading to their mass adoption.”

FNM recently entered into a contract of technical and industrial cooperation with Agrale, the only 100 percent Brazilian vehicle manufacturer. Agrale has been on the Brazilian and international market for nearly 60 years. As a part of this launch, they are partnering with FNM and Ambev to invest in clean technologies for fleet vehicles.

"We are thrilled to a part of the overall team that is working to introduce FNM’s new electric trucks,” Beach said. “The beer and beverage markets are the first of many sectors that will deploy EVs.”

Read the full article in the American Journal of Transportation here.