PORTLAND, Ore., Jan. 31, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Daimler Truck North
America LLC (DTNA), NextEra Energy Resources, LLC and
BlackRock Renewable Power (BlackRock) today announced
that they have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to lay
the foundation for a proposed joint venture (JV) to design,
develop, install and operate a nationwide, high-performance
charging network for medium- and heavy-duty battery electric and
hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in the U.S. With the goal of
accelerating the rollout of carbon-neutral freight transportation,
start of operations for the future JV is planned for 2022. Initial
funding is expected to be comprised of approximately $650 million divided equally among the three
parties.
![Daimler Truck North America LLC (DTNA), NextEra Energy Resources, LLC and BlackRock Renewable Power (BlackRock) signed a Memorandum of Understanding to lay the foundation for a proposed joint venture to design, develop, install and operate a nationwide, high-performance charging network for medium- and heavy-duty battery electric and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in the U.S. Daimler Truck North America LLC (DTNA), NextEra Energy Resources, LLC and BlackRock Renewable Power (BlackRock) signed a Memorandum of Understanding to lay the foundation for a proposed joint venture to design, develop, install and operate a nationwide, high-performance charging network for medium- and heavy-duty battery electric and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in the U.S.](https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1736647/Daimler_Memorandum_of_Understanding.jpg)
Lack of a publicly available, nationwide electric charging
infrastructure for commercial vehicles, especially those used for
long-haul freight operations, remains one of the biggest barriers
for widespread deployment of electric trucks. With formation of
this JV, the three parties will be pooling their resources to
address this challenge. The parties plan to build a network of
charging sites on critical freight routes along the east and west
coasts and in Texas by 2026,
leveraging existing infrastructure and amenities while adding
complementary greenfield sites to fulfill anticipated customer
demand. First phase is set to begin construction in 2023.
Initial focus will be on battery electric medium- and heavy-duty
vehicles followed by hydrogen fueling stations for fuel cell
trucks; the sites will also be available for light-duty vehicles to
serve the greater goal of electrifying mobility.
The proposed JV will benefit from the broad experience and
knowledge of its founding members. NextEra Energy Resources, the
world's largest generator of renewable energy from the wind and
sun, is also a significant investor in electric and charging
infrastructure and brings experience optimizing renewable energy,
resiliency and grid integration. DTNA offers the expertise of
developing electric trucks (start of production of battery electric
Freightliner eCascadia and eM2 in 2022/23), walk-in vans and school
buses, and the experience of providing consultant services to its
customers, the nation's fleet operators. In cooperation with the
local utility company Portland General Electric (PGE), DTNA opened
the first-of-its-kind public charging site for commercial vehicles
in the U.S. BlackRock's Renewable Power group is one of the
largest renewable power equity investment platforms in the world.
The group seeks to invest across the spectrum of renewable
power and energy transition supporting infrastructure globally,
with over $9.5 billion in total
commitments and investments in over 350 wind and solar projects, in
addition to electric vehicle charging infrastructure and battery
energy storage systems, across 15 countries and 5 continents.
BlackRock's Renewable Power group is a part of BlackRock Real
Assets.
John O'Leary, president and CEO
DTNA, said: "This planned joint venture, and our collaboration with
BlackRock and NextEra Energy Resources, will address the urgent
need for a nationwide battery electric and hydrogen fuel charging
infrastructure for commercial vehicles to reach shared climate
goals. Our joint investment will act as a catalyst to make a
carbon-neutral trucking industry a reality. This project is a
critical step toward developing a sustainable ZEV ecosystem across
North America, and we look forward
to including additional partners as it progresses. We are committed
to providing access to this network not only for the DTNA vehicle
brands, but also for any manufacturers using predominant industry
charging standards and communication protocols."
"Working with Daimler Truck North America and BlackRock, we
expect to accelerate the transformation of the transportation
sector and make future investments in electrification upgrades,
charging stations and renewables,"
said John Ketchum, president and
CEO, NextEra Energy Resources. "This collaboration builds on our
market-leading eIQ Mobility software platform for quantifying the
value and timing of fleet conversions and our
decarbonization-as-a-service platform that help fleets execute on
their plans to transition to zero emission electric and hydrogen
vehicles."
David Giordano, Global Head of
BlackRock's Renewable Power Group, said, "The commercial
transportation sector is a significant contributor to carbon
emissions and we firmly believe that decarbonization of
transportation will be a critical societal focus for the next
decade. Having already made several investments in the EV
charging infrastructure space around the globe, we also believe
that investments in the sector are highly complementary to our
renewable power generation investment strategy. We are pleased
to collaborate with NextEra Energy Resources and Daimler Truck
North America on this proposed joint venture, which has the
potential to provide our clients with access to compelling
opportunities that support the energy transition."
ABOUT DAIMLER TRUCK NORTH
AMERICA
Daimler Truck North America LLC, headquartered in Portland, Oregon, is a leading provider of
comprehensive products and technologies for the commercial
transportation industry. Daimler Truck North America designs,
engineers, manufactures and markets medium- and heavy-duty trucks,
school buses, vehicle chassis and their associated technologies and
components under the Freightliner, Western Star, Thomas Built
Buses, Freightliner Custom Chassis Corp and Detroit brands. Daimler
Truck North America is a subsidiary of Daimler Truck Holding AG
(DTG), one of the world's leading commercial vehicle manufacturers.
For more information, visit www.daimler-trucksnorthamerica.com.
ABOUT NEXTERA ENERGY RESOURCES
NextEra Energy Resources, LLC (together with its affiliated
entities, "NextEra Energy Resources") is a clean energy leader and
is one of the largest wholesale generators of electric power in the
U.S., with approximately 23,900 megawatts of total net generating
capacity, primarily in 38 states and Canada as of
year-end 2020. NextEra Energy Resources, together with its
affiliated entities, is the world's largest generator of renewable
energy from the wind and sun based on 2020 megawatt hours produced
on a net generation basis, and a world leader in battery storage.
The business operates clean, emissions-free nuclear power
generation facilities in New
Hampshire and Wisconsin as part of the NextEra
Energy nuclear fleet. NextEra Energy Resources, LLC is a subsidiary
of Juno Beach, Florida-based
NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NEE). For more information,
visit www.NextEraEnergyResources.com.
ABOUT BLACKROCK REAL ASSETS
In today's dynamic and complex global investing market,
BlackRock Real Assets seeks to help clients access real assets that
could help meet their investment goals by providing a distinct
range of well defined, outcome orientated strategies, along the
investment risk-return spectrum.
BlackRock Real Assets' dedicated teams of industry and sector
specialists deliver global reach, with deep local expertise. They
have decades of relevant experience, are deeply embedded in their
operating industries by sector and geography and have developed
strong partnership networks over time. BlackRock's culture of risk
management, knowledge sharing and investment discipline sets
BlackRock Real Assets apart and underpins all that they do. With
over 400 professionals in 30 offices managing over $65 billion in client commitments as of
September 30, 2021, BlackRock Real
Assets partners with clients to provide solutions tailored to
individual portfolio needs such as income, growth, liquid, or
balanced real assets outcomes.
Media contacts:
Anja Weinert,
anja.weinert@daimler.com
Steven Stengel,
steven.stengel@nexteraenergy.com
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SOURCE Daimler Truck North America LLC