Anheuser-Busch buys 40 Tesla trucks to deliver beer

Tesla says its upcoming electric big-rig semi trucks are the future of trucking, and Anheuser-Busch is one of the first companies to place an order. The trucks are scheduled to go into production in 2019, and Anheuser-Busch has already placed an order for 40, which the company says it will use to deliver beer.

Anheuser-Busch announced this week that it plans to use the Tesla trucks to ship beer from its breweries to wholesalers. Tesla says the trucks will be able to travel 500 miles on one charge. Anheuser-Busch has 21 breweries, and the trucks will be making deliveries to wholesalers within 150 to 200 miles of them.

According to Yahoo Finance, Anheuser-Busch already has 750 trucks and spends $120 million a year on fuel. Using the Tesla trucks could have an enormous impact on the company’s fuel costs, and also its environmental impact.

“Integrating the Tesla semi-trucks into the brewer’s distribution network will help Anheuser-Busch achieve its commitment to reduce its operational carbon footprint by 30 percent by 2025 - the equivalent of removing nearly 500,000 cars from the road globally each year,” the company said.

Shipping and delivery is an enormous part of the beer industry, and Anheuser-Busch is reportedly also looking at other electric-powered trucks that are expected to come to the market soon. For more fascinating facts about the beer industry, here are 10 things you didn’t know about beer.