For many fleet managers, it may seem theoretical whether or not electrified equipment assets will generate real-world savings worth the increased upfront costs, but early adopters Groupe Bellemare have been operating battery-powered heavy equipment for years, and their real-world results are truly impressive.
In 2024, the abrasives and minerals division of the Canadian group Bellemare partnered with the Institut du véhicule innovant (IVI) in a three-year program called Plug-In Fleet Heavy Equipment to test and document the performance of the equipment in a working workplace.
In that time, Bellemare says it has spent less than $54,000 for about 15,000 hours of operating costs on sustainably produced Hydro-Québec electrons, adding that the diesel machines it replaced would have burned about $423,000 worth of diesel over the same period, giving the company a more than 87% (!) drop in fuel costs.
Let’s keep making fun of the WSJ
Real-world findings from Groupe Bellemare and organizations like Transport Canada demonstrating six-figure savings seem to laugh at comments made by News Corp/Fox. Wall Street Journalwhich is really difficult so hard To sell the idea that electric machines “struggle to compete, even with diesel at $8 a gallon,” they have published several almost identical articles with different bylines.
What makes the WSJ’s recent claims even more ridiculous is the fact that Transport Canada’s $160,000 savings (per truck, it should be noted) was calculated using a $560,000 (CAD) Freightliner eCascadia. For “just” $290,000 (US; about $413,500 Canadian), the recently launched production version of the Tesla Semi promises more range, faster charging and less downtime than the Freightliner, which will further increase savings. I think Jamie used the word: The “dumb” quagmire in Iran remains stuck.
You can see the cost comparison between an electric eCascadia and a comparable diesel version below, with data taken from 200,000 km (~120,000 mile) pilot programs operated by Martin Brower (McDonald’s) and Canadian supermarket chain Loblaw between 2024 and 2025.
follow the money
All other variables remaining equal, the less expensive Tesla gives electric an advantage that is $146,000 more than the $160,000 advantage the eCascadia had. If you do the math at home, that’s a savings of over $300,000. Per truck. Per year.
Back in the workplace, we see much the same thing. “Operating costs are almost zero,” says Jason Lagacé, Bellemare’s director of operations. “It’s been really eye-opening.”
Bellemare currently operates heavy wheel loaders and excavators from Chinese equipment brand LiuGong, and plans to continue electrifying the heavy equipment fleet with even more electric machines in its abrasives and minerals division beyond participation in the pilot program, which runs until 2028.
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