Five years after CEO Elon Musk initially unveiled the commercial vehicle, Tesla delivered the first production prototypes of its long-delayed electric semi truck on Thursday evening. Pepsi received the first Tesla Semi trucks during a ceremony at the business gigafactory in Sparks, Nevada.
When the Tesla Semi was first shown in December 2017, Pepsi placed an order for 100 vehicles. Anheuser-Busch, Walmart, and UPS are some additional well-known clients on the waiting list.
At least five Tesla Semis with PepsiCo and Frito-Lay branding were visible at the event. Pepsi previously disclosed plans to employ at least 15 Tesla Semis to make its Frito-Lay facility in Modesto, California an emissions-free building.
The major disclosure comes a few months after Musk tweeted that the long-delayed Semi was in production and that first deliveries will start in December 2022.
Initially unveiled in 2017, Musk’s electric Class 8 truck was scheduled to begin manufacturing in December of the same year. Delays have hampered the transportation program. Due to supply chain issues and a shortage of battery cells, Tesla stated in its second quarter 2021 financial report that it would need to delay production until 2022.
The cost of the Semi truck was kept a secret by Tesla.
