Evergreen Waste Services recently took delivery of the first of five Mack LR Elrctric models, making its battery electric vehicle (BEV) the first all-electric Class 8 waste vehicle to operate in Delaware. Evergreen Waste Services also said it plans to use bi-directional charging to charge the LR electric battery during off-peak hours and return power to the power grid during off-peak hours. Mack made the announcement during WasteExpo 2024, held May 6-9, at the Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada.
“It is exciting for Mack to be part of Evergreen Waste’s peak shaving efforts to help reduce the amount of energy purchased from its local utility company during peak demand hours,” said Jonathan Randall, president, Mack Trucks North America. “This is just one example of the benefits of battery electric vehicles, and we are thrilled to be able to supply five Mack LR Electric Reusable Vehicles to Evergreen Waste to help support them on their journey to adopt electric technology.”
Evergreen Waste, based in Hokessin, DE, put the LR Electric into service on May 4, and began daily service on May 13. The company tells us that the LR Electric, equipped with a 25-yard back-loader McNeilus chassis, will operate in a residential area in New Castle County, DE. LR Electric is planned to make 600 vans and travel about 40 miles each day.
Evergreen received grant funding through the Delaware Mitigation Plan, said Marcus Stevens, CEO of Evergreen Waste Services. Stevens said the company plans to add electric vehicles to its fleet whether they receive funding or not, but the grant allowed them to purchase four more LR electric vehicles to add to their fleet of 50 vehicles. All Class 8 waste vehicles in the Evergreen Waste fleet are Mack trucks.
Evergreen Waste has two charging stations on site, with three additional charging stations to be installed later. Evergreen ordered five charging stations to accommodate the five LR electric vehicles so they can all be charged at the same time.
“We are one of the first companies to connect the car to the grid,” Stevens said. “We will return LR Electric to our site with approximately 40% less battery life than it had when it left. We will then put power back into the grid during peak hours, and then we will charge the vehicle during peak hours from 11 p.m. to 4 a.m., and the vehicle will Fully charged and ready to go by 5am.
Stevens said Mack Ultra’s service agreement was instrumental in his purchasing decision. Standard on all Mack LR Electric models, the Ultra Service Agreement includes scheduled maintenance, preventive maintenance, towing, repair, battery monitoring service and Mack Uptime Services in one package. It can be included with monthly truck payments for customers in the U.S. and Canada through Mack Financial Services (MFS).
The Mack LR Electric offers a record total battery capacity of 376 kWh for 42% more power and greater range between vehicle charges. Dual electric motors produce 448 sustained horsepower and 4,051 lb.-ft. of peak torque output from zero rpm.
Four NMC (nickel manganese cobalt oxide) lithium-ion batteries, charged by a 150-kilowatt SAE J1772-compliant charging system, power the vehicle and all on-board accessories through 12V, 24V and 600V circuits. The two-stage regenerative braking system helps recover energy from the hundreds of stops the car makes each day as the load increases, Mack said.
The Mack LR Electric is produced at Mack Lehigh Valley Operations (LVO) facility in Macungie, Pennsylvania, where all Mack Series 8 vehicles for North America and export are assembled.
