SEA Electric enters US market

Australian electric vehicle technology company SEA Electric is set to launch commercial vehicles in the United States.

It is showcasing two trucks at the Indianapolis Work Truck Show in March and California’s Advanced Clean Transportation Expo in April.

The display vehicles are based on popular Ford and Isuzu platforms and are at an advanced build stage, with assembly of the Ford F-59 ‘Stripped Chassis’ taking place at Ford’s DCP assembly facility in Detroit and the Isuzu NRR being assembled nearby at a third-party plant.

SEA Electric has also recently established its own site in Los Angeles, and appointed its first US-based employees to guide these new products and future projects through US certification and distribution.

SEA Electric managing director Tony Fairweather says establishing a presence in the United States was a logical step forward for the company given the size of the market and its demand for EVs.

“We see a lot of opportunities in the States, it’s an extremely large commercial vehicle market with a strong interest in sustainability – the US is an important part of our growth plans.

“The country’s high urbanisation and sprawling cities also provide conditions where EV can deliver operators a lot of efficiency gains, not to mention the obvious environmental benefits,” Fairweather says.

The Ford F-59 Stripped Chassis is powered by the SEA-Drive 120b power-system which produces 150kW of continuous power, 250kW of maximum power, continuous torque of 1230Nm and maximum torque of 2500Nm.

The second of the display trucks is a Pantech-bodied Isuzu NRR and also features the SEA-Drive 120b power-system.

Both vehicles have operating ranges of up to 350 kilometres.

Both vehicles will enter in-service trials with major US fleets following the Work Truck Show.

SEA Electric also has a Ford Transit van programme underway which will enter a trial stage in April.

The van features the SEA Drive 70 power-system which provides continuous power of 75kW, maximum power of 134kW and 700Nm of maximum torque for an operating range of up to 350km.

Batteries for all three vehicles can be fully charged overnight in four to six hours using a 20kW on-board charger, which allows them to be plugged-in and charged from any three-phase power source.

Fairweather says the SEA-Drive powered vehicles are ideal for urban and metropolitan back-to-base distribution applications.

“For back-to-base operations EV technology is extremely attractive because at the end of the working day, these vehicles are conveniently charged overnight and ready to go again the next morning.

“Operators can expect a payback period of less than four years on their SEA-Drive powered truck or van, so with a battery lifecycle of approximately 10 years, there are great efficiencies to be gained over the whole life of the vehicle,” Fairweather says.

SEA Electric’s US venture builds on the company’s Australian operations which has seen it become a major player in the EV technology market.

The company is also expanding its local assembly presence in Victoria’s Latrobe Valley, providing capacity to produce up to 2,400 CBU (completely built up) van, light commuter bus and truck units per annum.