CALSTART, a nonprofit working to develop clean, efficient transportation solutions, awarded the Volvo Group its 2020 Blue Sky Award. The award acknowledges organizations and individuals that have made “outstanding marketplace contributions to clean air, climate change mitigation and the development of clean transportation technologies.”
The Volvo LIGHTS project was recognized for its efforts “in uniting public and private stakeholders to successfully introduce zero- emission battery-electric trucks and equipment into commercial operation,” according to Volvo.
“We are incredibly pleased to honor the Volvo Group, and the vision shown in its Volvo LIGHTS project and team, with this year’s Blue Sky Award,” said CALSTART president/CEO John Boesel in a prepared statement. “The project has played a critical role in making medium- and heavy-duty transportation electrification real by uncovering and resolving numerous potential obstacles to widespread adoption. To a great extent because of the Volvo LIGHTS project, Volvo Trucks is beginning production in North America of a family of electric trucks and deserves to be recognized across the industry.”
The Volvo LIGHTS (Low Impact Green Heavy Transport Solutions) project is a collaboration between 15 public and private partners to develop a blueprint to successfully introduce battery-electric trucks and equipment into the market at scale. The project is led by the Volvo Group and South Coast Air Quality Management District (South Coast AQMD), along with partners NFI Industries, Dependable Supply Chain Services, TEC Equipment, Greenlots, Port of Long Beach, Port of Los Angeles, Southern California Edison, CALSTART, the University of California, Riverside CE-CERT, Reach Out, Rio Hondo College and San Bernardino Valley College.
CALSTART’s role in the project is to manage the procurement of zero-emission terminal tractors, forklifts and other non-road equipment.
“The Volvo LIGHTS project owes its success to the determination and dedication of our many project partners,” said Peter Voorhoeve, president of Volvo Trucks North America, in a statement. “Volvo LIGHTS’ diverse stakeholders each represent one aspect of the holistic ecosystem needed to support the deployment of battery-electric heavy-duty trucks. Volvo Trucks now enters the next phase of commercial production taking into account the very valuable lessons learned from the Volvo LIGHTS project and applying them to help fully realize our vision of creating sustainable transport solutions.”
Source: Volvo Group
