- brightdrop's ev600 electric van has reached its first customer, fedex, which received the first five out of a total order of 500 vans.
- the ev600 uses gm's ultium batteries for a claimed 250-mile range and has 600 cubic feet of storage space.
- the brightdrop purchase is part of fedex's goal to become carbon neutral by 2040, which also includes reservations for 20 tesla semi trucks.
general motors' ultium battery platform isn't just underpinning the 1000-hp gmc hummer ev and the upcoming chevrolet silverado ev with its available 24-inch wheels, it's also serving as the basis for something far more utilitarian: the brightdrop ev600. first revealed last january, general motors' electric commercial van has now officially arrived, with brightdrop's first customer, fedex, receiving five ev600s out of a total order of 500 late last week.
general motors says that this makes the ev600 the "fastest built vehicles, from concept to market, in general motors history." as the name suggests, the electric van has more than 600 cubic feet of cargo space, and the ultium batteries can provide a claimed range of up to 250 miles.
the five brightdrop ev600s are part of fedex's effort to become carbon neutral by 2040, and subsidiary fedex express is aiming for 50 percent of its fleet purchases to be electric by 2025, before hitting 100 percent by 2030. this isn't fedex's first foray into electric powertrains, however. the company says it first used an ev—powered by a lead-acid battery—in california in 1994 and introduced hybrid vehicles in its fleet in 2003. fedex also took delivery of several of the short-lived navistar estar electric delivery trucks back in 2010. the delivery company also has a reservation for 20 tesla semis and is purchasing 120 electric trucks from a company called xos.