Tesla CEO Elon Musk Thursday night handed over his company's first production electric Semi trucks to PepsiCo.
Following its debut in November 2017, Semi was originally set for production in 2019. That date was delayed at least three times in the past three years as legacy OEMs like Paccar, Volvo, Mack, Freightliner and upstart Nikola place multiple electric trucks with fleet customers.
"I can't believe it's been five years," Musk recalled from the Tesla Gigafactory stage Thursday night. Musk himself bobtailed a Semi to the stage. "A lot has happened in the world but here we are. It's real... It looks sick. You want to drive that. It looks like it came from the future. It drives like a Tesla. If you're a truck driver, and you want the most badass rig on the road, this is it."
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Placing an order for 100 Semis in December 2017, just weeks after the truck made its debut, PepsiCo was among the early reservation holders for the Tesla all-electric tractor, and plans to use the trucks at its Frito-Lay plant in Modesto, California, and its PepsiCo beverages facility in Sacramento. PepsiCo CEO Ramon Laguarta has previously said transportation accounts for about 10% of Pepsi's greenhouse gas emissions.
"This is fantastic," said PepsiCo Foods North American CEO Steven Williams as he took ahold of the vehicle's key card. "We're thrilled."
Semi's first cargo run for PepsiCo was delivering a load of Frito-Lay chips to the launch event.
