Penske Truck Leasing is continuing to expand its fleet electrification efforts, including the evaluation of related technologies to support the charging needs of battery electric trucks. Since April, Penske has been working with Stem, a provider of artificial intelligence driven energy storage services, to pilot its Athena smart energy storage software and operate an advanced battery storage system. The pilot project included a 350 kilowatt (kW)/800 kilowatt per hour (kWh) battery system powered by Stem’s Athena at Penske’s heavy-duty truck charging positions in Ontario, CA.

“We collaborated with Stem and other suppliers in designing and implementing the electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure,” Sean Yentsch, vice president of facilities at Penske, said. “We then used Stem’s Athena smart energy software to optimize the electricity requirements associated with charging commercial electric trucks. We’ve been pleased with the initial results, and we continue to evaluate expanding the use of this AI-driven energy storage system as new charging positions equipped with supplemental battery storage are established.”

Stem’s Athena predicts when a charging site’s electricity demand will spike and uses the supplemental stored energy via on-site batteries at the optimal time to drive off-peak electricity savings and minimize utility peak demand charges. Since starting the pilot, smart energy storage has driven a 40% decrease in Penske’s site peak energy consumption.

Stem collaborated with Penske and its other suppliers in project execution, including optimizing energy tariffs, utilizing energy storage to secure funds from California Air Quality Resources (CARB) as well as securing incentives from California’s Self Generation Incentive Program (SGIP).

“The growth in demand for electric vehicles and fleet charging solutions will require smart energy storage to help optimize energy usage, support the grid and help companies go electric,” John Carrington, CEO of Stem, said. “Our Athena software continues to stand out as a premier solution offering, bringing together the many critical components in driving customer savings and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction. We are proud of our delivered AI-driven services to Penske, a leader in fleet electrification initiatives. The superior results of this EV project prove the unique role energy storage can play as a system integrator and the value of having a scalable, AI-powered services platform.

“For businesses, smart charging with energy storage can help to manage costs and electrical loads while helping future-proof facilities against expensive upgrades. For utilities, smart energy storage can serve as a cost-effective solution for meeting the significant charging loads associated with fleet electrification.”