Shell Starship 3.0 to cruise highways this summer

This summer, the Shell Starship 3.0 will be touring cross-country from California to Florida with a new engine.

The truck will now be powered by a Cummins X15N natural gas engine that will run on Shell renewable natural gas, according to a news release. Shell’s renewable natural gas is commercially available. It also has been certified by the California Air Resources Board Low Carbon Fuel Standard Pathways program for having a low carbon intensity rating

Renewable natural gas fuel is derived from organic waste and is interchangeable with compressed natural gas and liquid natural gas in transport vehicles.

“Shell Starship 3.0 will feature some of the best-in-class technologies which are leading the way forward in helping decarbonize the heavy transport sector,” Selda Gunsel, president of Shell Global Solutions and vice president of fuels and lubricants technology for Shell, said in a news release. “The combination of Shell RNG fuels for fleets and quality, low-friction Shell Rotella lubricants made a natural gas engine a great choice for the next evolution of Starship.”

Shell Starship demonstration run

Shell Starship 3.0 will make a demonstration run on the West Coast of the U.S. in preparation for a cross-country demonstration run from San Diego to Jacksonville, Fla., in August. The two previous Starship cross-country runs have followed this route. The North American Council for Freight Efficiency plans to again monitor and verify the results.

The demonstration prototype truck is expected to deliver a material demonstration of sustainable freight ton efficiency, utilizing the key performance metric, ton-miles of goods shifted per kilogram of carbon dioxide emitted. The truck will showcase how fleets today can reduce their energy use and carbon emissions without losing focus on the cost of their operations. The natural gas engine using Shell R-CNG is expected to reduce emissions when compared with a diesel engine.

The first Shell Starship hit the road in 2018. As described, the StarShip Project uses available technology to minimize the energy required to transport cargo. The holistic approach includes aerodynamic design, advanced engine and drive train technology, low-viscosity synthetic lubricants, efficient driving methods and other means.

Cummins X15N natural gas engine

Columbus, Ind.-based Cummins Inc. announced in February that the X15N natural gas engine powering the Shell Starship 3.0 will come to market in 2024. The engine maker says it delivers diesel-like ratings as well as durability and reliability to allow fleets to significantly reduce their carbon footprint without sacrificing capability.

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