BERLIN — Progress Rail will provide up to four EMD Joule battery-electric locomotives to BNSF for testing in Southern California, the company has announced today at InnoTrans.
The trial, to be supported in part by government grants, will also see Progress provide two charging stations for the locomotives. The SD70J units will have 8 Megawatt-hours of storage capacity, which Progress says will make them the largest battery-electric locomotives in North America. They will operate in yards and on routes in Southern California.
“Progress Rail is excited to provide this groundbreaking zero exhaust emission technology to BNSF,” Progres Rail CEO Marty Haycraft said in a press relesae “We are committed to helping our customers meet their emissions reduction goals.”
The locomotives are scheduled for delivery in 2024.
John Lovenburg, BNSF vice president of environment and sustainability, called the Joule locomotive “an exciting advancement in battery-electric locomotive technology,” and said the project “is well aligned with BNSF’s commitment to innovation and leadership in sustainable freight,” We are focused on continuing to reduce the environmental impact in the communities where we operate and proud to do our part to assess the commercial and operational viability of emerging technologies that reduce emissions.”
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