New Energy Transport delivered the electric truck to consumer goods firm Unilever on Monday, which has put the vehicle to work distributing personal and home care products to stores.
The zero-emissions Volvo vehicle is the first of 11 expected to go into service for the transport firm this year after it announced a $5 million equity raise in June to accelerate its plans.
The announcement also comes less than a week after Volvo launched its first heavy-duty electric trucks built in Australia, and after Woolworths revealed plans to electrify more grocery deliveries.
The Volvo FH electric prime mover is the first truck delivered by New Energy Transport as part of its larger plan to transform Australia's reliance on diesel-powered freight vehicles.
Putting the truck into service immediately proved electric transport was a viable option for freight operators, New Energy Transport co-chief executive Frederik Pehrsson said, who would otherwise find it difficult to reduce their emissions.
"This is a major milestone as we take the keys to our first truck and bring our first customer onto the road," he said.
"Electric freight means lower costs, greater reliability and a real cut in emissions and it's brands like Unilever that will drive the shift at scale, decarbonising their supply chains while delivering greater efficiency."
The truck will operate from Unilever's Ingleburn base in south-west Sydney and deliver consumer goods across the city on a daily basis.
The company had cut emissions from other parts of its operations, Unilever sustainability head Brooke Sprott said, but transport had proven a challenge.
"Decarbonising heavy freight transport is one of the most complex challenges in our supply chain and it's not something any company can solve alone," she said.
"This partnership is an important step in accelerating progress towards net-zero emissions across our value chain."
The company will lease the truck from Volvo with assistance from the Clean Energy Finance Corporation, which committed $70 million to discounting electric truck access.
The vehicle is the first of 20 electric trucks New Energy Transport plans to launch on Australian roads before the end of 2026.
It is also building an electric truck depot in Wilton, outside Sydney, that will initially support charging for 50 vehicles.
Other Australian organisations investing in low-emission heavy transport include Linfox, Woolworths, Team Global Express, and Australia Post.
Heavy transport represents about seven per cent of Australia's carbon emissions, according to government estimates, but could reach 16 per cent in 2040.
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