Tesla Semi Is Key to Achieving Pepsi’s Energy Sustainability

Tesla Semi is the key to achieving PepsiCo’s sustainability goals. The 21 electric trucks support the company’s operations in Sacramento, benefiting both Pepsi and the environment.

PepsiCo Sacramento has 21 Tesla Semi Trucks

After the Tesla Semi hit the market in December 2021, PepsiCo became the first company to take delivery of them. This exclusive partnership of companies has benefited all parties and made a significant contribution to protecting the environment. The PepsiCo facility in Sacramento has become the place where the Tesla Semis show the first results of their work.

At an April 2023 event, the company said the Tesla partnership was made possible by a grant from the Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District, which paid for 18 out of the 21 trucks. The purchase of electric Semis has become part of the sustainability efforts. In addition, Pepsi uses solar energy and renewable water, as well as other electric vehicles, to service the Sacramento facility.

“It’s critical for us. We’ve got some pretty aggressive goals to decarbonize our business,” PepsiCo’s chief sustainability officer Todd Squarek said at an April event. “By 2040, we aim to have almost 40% of our fleet decarbonized.”

Tesla Semi trucks deliver around the clock

In a new PepsiCo video uploaded to Vimeo (via @SawyerMerritt/X), the company shared details of using Semis in its daily operations. Tesla’s electric trucks are key to PepsiCo’s sustainability goals. Semis are in use around the clock and each one drives about 12 hours a day, according to Amanda DeVoe, PepsiCo’s Transformation and Strategy Director. Employees of the facility work in two shifts: one starts at about 1:00 am, the second at about 1:00 pm. Most Semis deliver goods within 100 miles of the Sacramento facility.

“Battery electric vehicles are essential for us,” DeVoe said. “It’s really grounded in our duty cycle, how we use our assets because a good majority of our business is anchored in going to market, we deliver predominantly under 100 miles on a daily basis, and we run those vehicles around 12 hours a day. ”

Semis travel 450 miles

While 18 electric trucks are used for deliveries to closer locations, three are for long-haul transportation. Dejan Antunović, PepsiCo’s Electrification Program Manager, said these trucks’ routes can range from 250 miles to 450 miles per trip. He noted that a particularly invaluable quality of the electric Tesla Semi trucks is regenerative braking.

“Going across Donnar’s Pass and back from Sacramento to Nevada, we’re able to, on the trip back, actually zero out, in terms of the state of charge improving due to regenerative braking.”

Charge to 95% in just 20-30 minutes

The main assistant in the efficiency of the Tesla Semis is the Megacharger. These are specially designed 750 kW chargers. They allow the Semis to reach 95 percent charge within 20 to 30 minutes. This speed is impressive, especially for a vehicle of this size.