The U.S. electric trucking market is about to get a major boost. Tesla has been selected as the primary manufacturer for an initial order of 2,500 Tesla Semi electric Class 8 trucks, the largest single electric truck procurement in U.S. history and a deal that could nearly double the country’s existing electric Class 8 fleet.
The order is part of a much larger 10,000-truck electrification initiative organized through the Zero-Emission Truck Shipper-Carrier Alliance Leading Electrification (ZET SCALE), a program operated jointly by Smart Freight Centre and Catalyst Mobility, formerly known as CALSTART.
The initiative brings together major freight shippers, carriers, manufacturers and financial partners to create enough purchasing power to reduce the cost of electric trucks and accelerate their deployment.
Microsoft and PepsiCo are among the founding shippers participating in ZET SCALE, which aims to demonstrate that large-scale demand can make zero-emission trucking more commercially viable.
Tesla Semi Selected After Competitive Bidding
All manufacturers offering Class 8 battery-electric trucks in North America were invited to participate in a competitive request-for-proposals process.
The participating manufacturers were evaluated on several factors, including vehicle price, driving range, charging capabilities and production capacity. Tesla was ultimately selected as the primary OEM for the initial 2,500 trucks.
The ZET SCALE Alliance also includes Kenworth, RIDE and Volvo as secondary OEM options. Carriers can use these manufacturers where their particular routes, operating requirements or fleet strategies make those vehicles a better fit.
The large-scale procurement is significant because individual fleet operators typically lack the purchasing volume needed to negotiate favorable electric truck pricing. By combining demand from multiple shippers and carriers, ZET SCALE is attempting to create economies of scale that can lower the upfront cost of zero-emission trucks.
The overall ambition is much larger than the first 2,500 vehicles. ZET SCALE is targeting 10,000 electric trucks and potentially more as the program expands.
Why the Tesla Semi Order Matters
The scale of the order is particularly notable given the relatively small size of the U.S. electric heavy-truck market.
Only 875 zero-emission heavy electric trucks were registered in the U.S. in 2025, compared with 1,103 in 2024, according to the figures cited in the announcement. A 2,500-truck procurement therefore represents a substantial addition to the current fleet.
The initiative also comes as trucking companies face pressure from high operating costs, including diesel fuel, maintenance and other expenses associated with conventional heavy-duty trucks.
Electric trucks can potentially reduce operating costs through lower energy and maintenance expenses, although the economics vary depending on vehicle utilization, electricity prices, charging infrastructure and financing.
ZET Financial, a strategic partner in the program, will issue the purchase order for the first 2,500 trucks and deploy them through a fair-market-value leasing program.
Its ZET Lease structure is designed to address one of the major barriers facing fleet operators: residual-value risk. Instead of requiring operators to carry the uncertainty surrounding the future value of an electric truck, the leasing structure is intended to shift that risk away from the fleet.
ZET Financial will also analyze individual fleet operating data, including duty cycles, electricity and diesel costs, financing, maintenance and infrastructure requirements, to determine the overall cost of operating electric trucks.
Electric Truck Deployments Will Focus on Major Freight Hubs
ZET SCALE is not planning to distribute the initial vehicles randomly across the country. The program is concentrating deployments in freight hubs where electric trucks can achieve high utilization and where the economics are expected to be strongest.
The first deployments are expected to focus primarily on:
– Southern California and Los Angeles
– Northern California and Stockton
– Central California and Bakersfield
– Seattle and Tacoma
– Houston
– Dallas
– San Antonio
– The Chicago area
– Atlanta
– Northern New Jersey, Newark and New York City
Concentrating electric trucks in high-density freight corridors could also improve the utilization of charging infrastructure. Higher utilization of both trucks and chargers can help spread infrastructure costs across more vehicle miles, potentially improving the overall economics of electric trucking.
Tesla Semi Faces a Growing Electric Truck Market
Tesla’s selection comes as competition in the electric Class 8 truck market continues to develop.
The Tesla Semi has attracted attention for its combination of range, efficiency and anticipated operating costs. Research from the International Council on Clean Transportation has also highlighted differences in pricing and range between Tesla’s Semi and electric trucks offered by established manufacturers.
At the same time, traditional truck manufacturers including Daimler, Volvo and companies within the TRATON Group are developing and selling battery-electric heavy trucks of their own.
The competitive landscape is becoming increasingly important as fleet operators move beyond small pilot programs and begin evaluating electric trucks based on total cost of ownership, uptime, charging infrastructure and real-world route requirements.
One challenge remains the upfront cost of electric trucks. Industry research has found that electric Class 8 tractors can still carry a significant price premium compared with diesel models, even as battery costs have declined.
Price transparency is another issue. Electric truck buyers can face difficulty comparing vehicle costs when manufacturers do not publicly disclose detailed pricing. California has moved to address part of the issue with legislation requiring greater vehicle price disclosure as a condition of receiving certain state subsidies.
U.S. Still Trails China in Electric Heavy Trucks
The expansion of the ZET SCALE program also highlights the growing gap between the U.S. and China in electric heavy-duty vehicle adoption.
Global electric truck sales have increased rapidly, but China continues to account for the overwhelming majority of the market. Industry data cited in the announcement indicates that China represented around 88% of global electric heavy-vehicle sales, while electric trucks accounted for about 25% of heavy vehicle sales in China in 2025.
In the U.S., electric heavy vehicles represented only about 3.1% of heavy vehicle sales during the same period.
More than 450,000 heavy electric vehicles were sold in China in 2025, compared with more than 25,000 in the U.S.
The difference demonstrates the scale of the challenge facing American truck manufacturers, fleet operators and charging providers as the industry moves toward zero-emission transportation.
Tesla Semi Factory Adds to Momentum
Tesla is also preparing to increase its ability to manufacture the Semi. The company has announced plans to open its dedicated Semi factory in Nevada, adding production capacity for its heavy-duty electric truck.
That timing could prove important as large fleet orders begin moving from pilot programs into commercial deployment.
The ZET SCALE order could provide Tesla with a significant customer base while giving participating fleets access to electric trucks at a scale that would have been difficult for individual operators to achieve.
More importantly, the program is attempting to solve one of the biggest problems facing electric trucking: the gap between technological capability and commercial economics.
