Forum Mobility Starts Construction of Heavy-Duty Electric Truck Charging Depot in the Port of Long Beach

The “FM Harbor” facility will support high-speed charging for hundreds of drayage trucks daily, supporting California’s transition to zero-emission transportation

Forum Mobility, a leading heavy-duty truck charging infrastructure provider, celebrated the groundbreaking of its new “FM Harbor” charging depot in the Port of Long Beach during an event on Wednesday. The facility will serve over 200 electric drayage trucks per day with high-speed charging infrastructure once complete by the end of 2024, supporting California’s transition to zero-emission transportation. Speakers at the event included participants from the City of Long Beach, the Port of Long Beach, the California Air Resources Board, Amazon, Talon Logistics, Redefined Transportation, and Harbor Trucking Association.

The FM Harbor facility is part of a larger Forum Mobility network of heavy-duty truck charging depots strategically located in ports and on routes to common freight destinations. Each depot includes on-site security, charging, and driver parking to deliver a plug-in-play experience for truckers switching to electric.

“Forum is building dedicated infrastructure for heavy-duty trucks to transition from diesel to electricity. With the support of the Port of Long Beach, the FM Harbor depot will provide drayage truckers a turn-key solution for zero-emission freight. At Forum Mobility facilities like this one, fleets can make the transition simply and without using their own capital,” said Matt LeDucq, CEO and co-founder of Forum Mobility.

Forum Mobility offers monthly subscription options for truck operators that include charging, or charging plus a truck together in one package. Amazon Global Mile, Talon Logistics, Ocean Network Express (North America) / Boxlinks, and Redefined Transportation have already secured reservations from Forum Mobility to utilize the facility. Other truck operators can also still join the network.

“Securing fully-staffed and dedicated charging inside the port makes us pioneers in the space, which puts us ahead of the competition,” said Emmanuel Carrillo, Talon Chief Executive Officer. “FM Harbor couldn’t be more convenient — 7,000 trucks a day go into the Port of Long Beach, and our fleet will be one of the few able to charge right next to the terminals. Forum’s turnkey charging solution allows me to focus on growing my business and serving my customers.”

Investors in the facility include Elemental Excelerator, a nonprofit investor focused on scaling climate technology for deep community impact. Elemental’s investment and support covered essential development costs, such as permitting and engineering design in addition to coaching for effective community, policymaker and other stakeholder engagement.

“We are proud to invest in projects like FM Harbor that result in a healthier, cleaner and more affordable future. Forum’s heavy-duty electric charging depot will directly reduce emissions in the surrounding community,” said Danya Hakeem, Elemental Excelerator Vice President of Portfolio. “We are ready to scale projects like these nationwide.”

California faces a particular need for heavy-duty truck charging infrastructure to meet the state’s goal of a 100% zero-emission drayage fleet by 2035, representing approximately 33,000 class 8 trucks. The California Energy Commission estimates that to comply with the Advanced Clean Fleet and other regulations, California will need 157,000 medium and heavy-duty chargers by 2030.

The FM Harbor charging depot will offer 19 dual-port 360 kW chargers and six 360 kW single-dispenser chargers, able to charge 44 trucks simultaneously and over 200 trucks per day. The facility is expected to come online by the end of 2024. This charging depot represents the type of replicable, scalable projects that stand to deliver jobs and health benefits at ports around the country — at a time when there is unprecedented federal funding and incentives to convert diesel truck fleets.

“We are excited to celebrate this milestone with so many leaders in the Port of Long Beach drayage community,” added LeDucq. “The Port of Long Beach has been an excellent partner in prioritizing charging. And most importantly, we are pleased to celebrate with so many of our customers, who are truly leading the way forward on zero emission freight.”

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