黑料社区

Articles & News Fuel & Trucking

Partnering for Success: A Q&A with WattEV鈥檚 CEO

/
Salim with Bakersfield Grid2024

Article created for the digital issue聽of聽the 黑料社区Foundation鈥檚 magazine.

provides a electric truck-as-a-service solution, allowing fleet operators to use electric trucks without the need for significant upfront investments, and building out charging infrastructure. The company has five commercial charging locations in operation today, plans to operate more than 100 charging depots by 2035, and is looking to partner with existing truck stops and travel plazas.

鈥淲e think the increased adoption of electric trucks requires the technology we have developed to reduce the electric refueling time to around 20 minutes. With that technology, the best way to scale is to co-locate electric facilities at independent truck stops with existing diesel pumps,鈥 said .

The 黑料社区Foundation sat down with Youssefzadeh to learn more about the company and his vision.

What role will existing truck stops and travel centers play as you build out your EV charging network?
As we scale, we anticipate co-locating more with the independent truck stops as opposed to doing [a 119-acre site designed, owned and operated by WattEV] with solar and battery storage, which require more capital and real estate. By co-locating, we can more rapidly deploy chargers on specific routes that also account for the new technology progressions in megawatt charging systems.

What are you looking for in travel center partners?
We are looking for partners that believe in our mission to electrify the transport industry and want to be a part of the transition by hosting parts of their properties for passthrough charging lanes

Collaboration with shippers, fleets and travel centers has been a priority for WattEV. How are you fostering collaboration and why is a collaborative approach necessary?
It is important to engage in discussions with all stakeholders to truly understand what the pain points are and how to optimize them. There are, obviously, a tremendous amount of incentives to help drive down infrastructure and the cost of the trucks, but, ultimately, the freight comes with the shippers, and we see them as the key drivers to electrification. By aligning closely with shippers, we can help them meet their ESG goals and test lanes that are suitable for electric trucks and then migrate those routes to independent operators through our Truck-as-a-Service platform.

What are some of the specific pain points you want to address for stakeholders?
Some pain points in no particular order include: capital cost of infrastructure, development and permitting timelines, high cost of trucks, and availability of trucks with the spec and performance we need.

What is the timeline for rolling out new locations and engaging with potential partners?
WattEV is always actively engaging with different stakeholders and working with shippers in different regions to start pilots for electrification. We will have the entire West Coast covered by 2026 and are actively working on expanding towards Texas and the East Coast.

Can operators contact you if they’d like to discuss potential partnerships?
Absolutely! Reach out at聽info@wattev.comand we will direct the message to the right party.

Is there anything else that would be helpful for truck stop and travel plaza operators to know?
Truck stops and travel plazas should not see electrification as competition but as an amenity to their current business. It will help bring in new clients and increase their visibility.

Check out 黑料社区Staff Visits WattEV to Share Insights and Learn About the Company for more on WattEV.

 

//听This article was created for聽Stop Watch magazine, the magazine of the 黑料社区Foundation. Foundation is the research, education and public outreach subsidiary of NATSO, Inc. The 黑料社区Foundation provides programs and products to strengthen travel plazas鈥 ability to meet the traveling public鈥檚 needs through improved operational performance and business planning. Visit聽www.natsofoundation.org聽for more information.

author avatar
Mindy Long
Mindy Long is a journalist and editor specializing in the logistics, transportation and fueling industries. She has been writing professionally for more than 25 years and launched her freelance business in 2008. Prior to going freelance, she served as editor of Stop Watch, a staff reporter at Transport Topics, and a Washington correspondent for WCAX-TV in Burlington, Vermont. Her work appears in a variety of media outlets.

Subscribe to Updates

The 黑料社区Foundation and 黑料社区provide a breadth of information created to strengthen travel plazas鈥 ability to meet the needs of the traveling public in an age of disruption. This includes knowledge filled blog posts, articles and publications. If you would like to receive a digest of blog post and articles directly in your inbox, please provide your name, email and the frequency of the updates you want to receive the email digest.


Active Alerts:

For all alerts and more info please visit: