The Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) has committed up to $22 million (USD 15.1 million) in support of a large-scale deployment of battery electric trucks (BETs) by United Kingdom (UK)-headquartered electric fleet specialist Zenobe Australia.
Set to acquire what will be the country’s largest ever electric truck fleet, Zenobe is deploying up to 148 China-headquartered manufacturer Foton T5 BETs via a leasing agreement inclusive of vehicle maintenance, warranties and upgrades, with Australian supermarket chain Woolworths.
The T5 is equipped with an 81-84 kWh CATL battery, providing a 7.2 hour overnight charge (AC) and 1.5 hour DC fast charging.
A single electric motor produces 115 kW of power, 300 Nm of torque and runs silent with zero emissions.
The Woolworths ‘last mile delivery’ fleet will service New South Wales (NSW), Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia (WA) and South Australia (SA), with first deliveries already rolled out in May 2026 and the remainder progressing through 2026.
Zenobe Australia and New Zealand Country Director Gareth Ridge said the project is evidence 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.”
CEFC Head of Infrastructure Julia Hinwood said by increasing the uptake of BETs CEFC is helping develop the market to bring them closer to price parity with their non-electric counterparts.
“This investment reflects the commercial viability of BETs and enables Zenobē to set competitive rentals to incentivise customers to lease BETs,” Hinwood said.
“Backing deployments in hard-to-abate sectors like freight helps normalise new technologies and bring in wider private investment.”
“Early large‑scale deployments are critical to generating real‑world performance data and operating benchmarks needed to underpin a secondary market for electric heavy vehicles,” Hinwood said.
Of the 12,003 trucks and heavy vans sold in Australia in 2026 to date, only 0.9% were electric.
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