California’s truck electrification market is moving beyond trials, with fleets now placing larger orders across new vehicles, conversions and shared charging infrastructure.
Janus Electric has secured conditional orders from four California freight operators for 67 diesel-to-electric truck conversions, 77 swappable battery packs and four Janus Charge & Change Stations.
The agreements, worth about A$45 million, lift Janus Electric’s US order book to 87 conversions across five customers. Including 25 conversions in Canada, its North American order book now stands at 112 trucks.
Port fleets are driving demand
Golden State Express, WEHACO, Tradelink Transport and King Fio Trucking all operate in the freight and port drayage market around Los Angeles and Long Beach.
These fleets run demanding duty cycles where vehicle availability matters. That makes charging time, infrastructure access and operating range central to the business case.
Janus is targeting that problem with diesel-to-electric conversions and swappable batteries, giving fleets an alternative to buying new battery-electric trucks and waiting for vehicles to recharge.
Existing EV operators are adding conversions
Several of the new customers already run electric trucks.
Tradelink Transport operates about 48 trucks, including 15 Volvo VNR Electric Class 8 models. It has ordered 21 Janus conversions, 25 battery packs and two battery-swap stations.
“With one-third of our fleet already operating as battery-electric, the Janus conversion platform helps us build on that momentum by providing another scalable solution,” Tradelink Transport President Rigoberto Cea said.
King Fio Trucking, which also operates battery-electric trucks, has ordered six conversions, eight battery packs and one swap station.
The orders suggest US fleets may adopt a mix of new electric trucks, converted vehicles, conventional charging and battery swapping rather than relying on one model.
Shared infrastructure could widen access
Golden State Express and WEHACO have each ordered 20 conversions and 22 battery packs. The affiliated fleets will share one battery-swap station.
That model could be significant for smaller operators that cannot justify standalone infrastructure.
“The grant support available in California makes the economics work, and being able to run two affiliated fleets off shared infrastructure is exactly the kind of solution we have been looking for,” Golden State Express and WEHACO President Fred Johring said.
Incentives remain the key catalyst
California funding continues to shape the market.
Janus said eligible operators may access about US$166,000 per truck through combined state and port incentives, potentially reducing the net cost of a qualifying conversion to close to zero.
Further support may be available for batteries and infrastructure, while a separate Port of Los Angeles program can offer up to US$300,000 per qualifying zero-emission truck.
The support improves the economics, but it also means the orders remain dependent on incentive and financing approvals.
Fleet buyers should distinguish between announced orders, funded projects, delivered vehicles and trucks operating in daily service.
Delivery is the next test
Janus expects deliveries to begin in the fourth quarter of 2026 and continue through 2027, subject to approvals and production scheduling.
The order book shows growing interest in truck conversions and battery swapping, particularly in port operations.
The bigger test will be whether the model can maintain productivity, control infrastructure costs and deliver reliable performance at scale.
