Kalmar and APM Terminals join forces for straddle carrier electrification pilot at Pier 400 terminal in Los Angeles

Kalmar, part of Cargotec, has signed a contract with APM Terminals Pier 400 Los Angeles to supply two new Kalmar electric AutoStrads™ and to undertake a retrofit of two existing hybrid straddle carriers. The new and retrofitted units will be part of APM Terminal’s $60M electrification pilot. The large order was booked in Cargotec’s Q1 2024 order intake, and the pilot is scheduled to commence in Q4 2024.

“With this pilot we look to gain greater understanding of how to convert our existing hybrid equipment fleet to fully electric with our onsite mechanic workforce,” said Jon Poelma, Managing Director of APM Terminals Pier 400. “Electrifying straddle carriers is an essential task for us. We’re confident they will be able to meet the significant operational demands of the terminal. We have made the commitment to our customers to decarbonise supply chains and are aiming for net-zero emissions at the terminal before 2030.”

The two Kalmar electric straddle carriers participating in the electrification pilot project will feature high-power batteries with an operation time of 45–50 minutes and a charging time of approximately five to six minutes. In the pilot project, charging will be performed at two Kalmar FastCharge™ charging stations strategically located on the machines’ working routes. All charging related decisions are performed automatically by Kalmar One Fleet Optimiser’s energy management module.

Arto Keskinen, Senior Vice President, Horizontal Transportation, Kalmar: “The automated straddle carrier terminal at Pier 400 in Los Angeles is a flagship reference project for Kalmar and a demonstration of our world-class automation and retrofit capabilities. We are exceptionally proud that APM Terminals has selected Kalmar as their partner for this electrification pilot, which will demonstrate the capabilities of our fully electric straddle carrier.”

Pier 400, opened in August 2002, is now the largest container port terminal in the Western Hemisphere. The terminal covers an area of 507 acres and is home to 19 Super Post-Panamax ship-to-shore (STS) cranes. The terminal currently operates a total of 132 Kalmar AutoStrads™, all of which have hybrid electric drivetrains.