Fonterra has put New Zealand’s first electric milk tanker to work collecting milk from Waikato farms.

The 8x4 truck and trailer combination built on a XCMG E700 battery swap truck supplied by eTrucks was unveiled in late-July and was due to start work based from Fonterra’s Waitoa site in mid-August.

Named by Fonterra farmer Stephen Todd from Murchison, Milk-E is part of Fonterra’s fleet decarbonisation work, which is one of a number of programmes that’s helping the Co-op towards becoming a leader in sustainability. 

Speaking at a launch event at Fonterra’s Morrinsville workshop where the tanker was completed, Fonterra Chief Operating Officer, Fraser Whineray said: “Right across the Co-op our teams are constantly looking at how we can decrease our emissions – from on farm, to at our sites and throughout our transport network. 

“The team here at our Morrinsville Workshop have done a fantastic job of pulling this tanker together. Being a New Zealand first, there’s been a lot of creative thinking and Kiwi ingenuity to bring Milk-E to life.”

Changes to the battery configuration have given the team an opportunity to trial other additions to improve milk collection efficiencies, reduce safety concerns, and reduce the amount of work required to customise a Fonterra tanker. A battery swap system is being installed at the Waitoa site where Milk-E will be based to trial how this could work within a fleet to minimise downtime from battery charging.  

The battery swap is estimated to take six minutes. A full charge of the battery takes about three hours and the 46-tonne GVM eight-axle tanker and trailer combination has an estimated range of 140km.

In the process of the build – which took 36 days to complete – the installation of an electric pump on the driver’s side has reduced the pipework on the truck by 3.4 metres, reducing tare weight.

Another design feature allows the milk hose to fall naturally back across the guards of the truck and is secured onto a bayonet connection which locks the hose in place and seals the end of the hose in transit.

Newly designed doors that open out sideways with minimal moving parts, result in improved safety and the need for a hydraulic tank and pump has been removed with a fully electric motor and pump installed. 

“It’s been great to see the team turn challenges into opportunities so in addition to trialling Milk-E’s on-road ability, we’re also trialling a new electric pump, hose configuration and cabinetry,” says Mr Whineray. 

Fonterra received co-funding from the Government’s Low Emissions Transport Fund (LETF), which is administered by EECA (the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority). 

The electric milk tanker will operate from Fonterra’s Waitoa site, which Mr Whineray says is fitting given it was the site of New Zealand’s largest fleet of electric milk trucks 100 years ago.

The E-tanker is part of Fonterra’s Electric Vehicle strategy that will see a third of the Co-op’s light vehicle fleet converted to EV’s by the end of 2023, while also focusing on transitioning medium and heavy vehicles.