Navistar will make its first delivery in the U.S. of its full battery electric medium-duty trucks, the International eMV Series, to Penske Truck Leasing. Penske Truck Leasing will take delivery of five of the trucks, making it the first U.S. fleet to add the full battery electric medium-duty vehicles, with plans to operate them in California.

“We are pleased to be partnering with Penske to take delivery of five of our earliest production eMV Series full battery electric trucks,” Dan Kayser, group vice president of national accounts at Navistar, said. “This is truly a first step in our collective journey to grow the fleet of zero-emissions vehicles. These vehicles will be manufactured on the same assembly lines that currently produce International diesel-powered vehicles.”

As a validation partner, Penske plans to operate these units at various locations throughout its footprint with the intent of evaluating the operation of electric trucks in real-world situations. The company is expanding its electrified fleet and evaluating related technologies to support a zero-emission commercial vehicle future.

“We look forward to this continued collaboration with Navistar to progress and validate emerging industry technologies. Our organization is committed to evaluating and providing real-world feedback to further advance and serve our customers,” Paul Rosa, senior vice president of procurement and fleet planning at Penske Truck Leasing, said.