CEFC backs commercialising battery electric trucks

The Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) is backing large-scale deployment of battery electric trucks (BETs) by committing $22 million to electric fleet specialist Zenobē Australia.

With the funding, Zenobē will acquire a fleet of up to 148 BETs to deliver low emissions groceries. Zenobē plans to lease out the BETs to Woolworths with the full fleet rollout completed over the course of 2027.

CEFC said the transaction backs what will be the largest fleet rollout of electric trucks in Australia, the Foton T5 BETs will be leased to Woolworths for last mile delivery across New South Wales and Victoria, with additional vehicles in Queensland, Western Australia and South Australia.

CEFC head of infrastructure Julia Hinwood said this investment reflects the commercial viability of BETs and enables Zenobē to set competitive rentals to incentivise customers to lease battery trucks.

She added by increasing the uptake of BETs, CEFC is helping develop the market to bring them closer to price parity with their non-electric counterparts.

"Backing deployments in hard-to-abate sectors like freight helps normalise new technologies and bring in wider private investment," she said.

"With fuel price volatility and supply risks increasingly material for freight operators, early large-scale deployments are critical to generating the real-world performance data and operating benchmarks needed to underpin a secondary market for electric heavy vehicles."

Of the 12,003 trucks and heavy vans sold in Australia in 2026 to date, only 0.9% were electric.

Under the model, Zenobē will retains ownership of the trucks, allowing Woolworths to deploy BETs during the lease term without taking on end-of-life risk. CEFC said the model represents a 'one-stop-shop' for customers who take up the lease rental, inclusive of vehicle maintenance, warranties and upgrades.

Zenobē country director for Australia and New Zealand Gareth Ridge noted the project is evidence that electrification is a commercial opportunity.

"Woolworths is already rolling out hundreds of electric trucks at scale, that's almost unheard of in Australia's freight sector and proof that with the right business model and competitive pricing from Zenobē, electrification stacks up right now," Ridge said.

"Together with Woolworths and the CEFC, we're proving that large-scale zero-emissions logistics is no longer a pilot, it's commercially viable and operationally proven."

The investment forms part of a broader CEFC focus on the decarbonisation of Australian transport, alongside commitments across passenger vehicles, fleet electrification, and charging infrastructure.