Shell Starship 3.0 Taking To The Road Again For A Demonstration Run And Cross-Country Tour
Houston, TX… – Building on the successful fall 2023 U.S. West Coast demonstration run, Shell Starship 3.0 recently took to the road again to show what is possible for efficiency and carbon reduction in commercial road transport. The truck, equipped with a Cummins X15N™ natural gas engine and powered by compressed natural gas (CNG), was on the road in May on a driving route throughout North Carolina.
During the run, performance data was collected to show the CO2 reduction and freight ton efficiency (FTE) capabilities of Shell Starship 3.0. These results will be third-party monitored and verified by the North American Council for Freight Efficiency (NACFE), as has been done with all previous Starship demonstration runs.
“The Shell Starship initiative continues to provide guidance on ways that advanced, currently available technologies can offer road transport efficiencies to fleets and drivers,” said Tom Mueller, General Manager of Shell Commercial Road Transport Lubricants. “Gathering added performance data with the natural gas engine-powered Starship will build on the previous run and provide us more information to share with fleets about how they can reduce their energy usage and carbon emissions without losing focus on the cost of their operations.”
Cross-Country Tour
Shell Starship 3.0 began a nationwide tour starting at the Advanced Clean Transportation (ACT) Expo in Las Vegas, Nev. from May 20 to 23. The truck participated in the vehicle demonstration ride portion of the show, which focuses on advanced clean vehicles and technology. Shell Starship 3.0 then traveled to Shell Rotella SuperRigs at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas from May 30 to June 1. The following week, the Class 8 truck traveled to Texas for stops at Shell’s Woodcreek Headquarters and the Shell Technology Center in Houston.
Shell Starship 3.0 will then visit key Shell partners and customers throughout the US. The tour will end in early fall with stops at our Shell CNG stations in California.
Shell Starship 3.0 Drivers
Brothers Brian and Eric Rector will again be tandem drivers for Shell Starship 3.0. They have been driving Shell Starship since 2020. Both have many years of experience driving Class 8 trucks. Updates from their experiences on the road will be posted on various Shell and Shell Rotella social media channels.
About Shell Starship 3.0
Shell Starship 3.0 contains components and features that promote lightweighting, low aerodynamic drag, and low rolling resistance Bridgestone tires. Shell Starship 3.0 operates using low-viscosity Shell Rotella natural gas engine oil and Shell Spirax transmission and axle oils. Low-viscosity lubricants require less energy to move throughout the engine while still providing the protection, efficiency, and performance needed in harsh operating environments.
The Cummins X15N™ natural gas engine powered by CNG or RNG where available, emits less CO2 than a diesel engine, confirming the potential for different engine and fuel options to reduce CO2 emissions to fleets. Renewable Natural gas is a transportation fuel that can be derived from organic waste[1] and is interchangeable with CNG and Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) in transport vehicles.
Shell Starship 3.0 demonstrated available efficient technologies and the spirit of innovation required to meet carbon reduction goals and help power progress. Industry collaboration is vital to help fleets meet their efficiency goals.
Caption:
Shell Starship 3.0 was at the recent Shell Rotella SuperRigs at the Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas. Brothers Brian (pictured left) and Eric (pictured right) Rector are the tandem drivers for Shell Starship 3.0. They posed for a photo with Heather Duffey (center), Global Communications Manager at Shell. – photo by Steve Pollock -