Many commercial fleets choose to lease, rather than buy, their trucks, and drayage trucks (aka terminal tractors or yard goats) represent an ideal use case for EVs—so the news that Penske Truck Leasing is now offering Orange EV electric terminal trucks to its fleet customers could portend a significant boost to electrification of trailer-handling operations.

Penske will lease and maintain the e-trucks, which will be offered to customers across the US. They’re designed for service at port facilities, truck yards, warehousing and distribution centers, container terminals and related operations where short-distance moves are required.

Missouri-based Orange EV was founded in 2012, and says it has deployed over 370 trucks to some 100 fleet customers in 24 states.

The Orange EV terminal trucks can operate up to 24 hours on a single charge, and feature a digital cab architecture and remote diagnostic capabilities.

“After spending significant time understanding this equipment’s capabilities, we are very pleased to make it a new product offering for our sales force in the US,” said Penske Senior VP Paul Rosa. “We currently have several customers placing orders for these units and taking delivery of their equipment.”

Source: Penske Truck Leasing