In anticipation of the next phase of development for the Shell Starship initiative, Shell Starship 2.0 completed a final run late in 2022 as part of the Shell Lubricants Supply Chain fleet which has been evaluating several decarbonization options for on-highway fleets. The deliveries included a full load of Shell Lubricants, including Shell Rotella.

Since 2018, Shell says the Shell Starship initiative has demonstrated how a Class 8 truck’s energy usage can be reduced by harnessing currently available energy-efficient technologies and lubricants.

Final Starship 2.0 Run

Shell Starship 2.0 executed two trips traveling 3,670 miles on existing routes between the Shell Houston Regional Distribution Center (HRDC) to the Fontana Regional Distribution Center (FRDC) in California and from Fontana to the Atlanta Regional Distribution Center (ARDC), according to the company.

The first of these runs, loaded with approximately 46,380 pounds of Shell Rotella engine oil, drove from Houston to Fontana where it was unloaded at FRDC, and according to the company, the Shell Starship 2.0 was fully loaded for the second leg of the drive as well, carrying approximately 45,988 pounds of product to the brand new ARDC in Atlanta.

The Shell Starship 2.0 drives resulted in the following:

Houston to Fontana – Shell Starship 2.0, according to Shell, achieved 241.5 ton-miles per gallon for freight ton efficiency – a 3.1-times improvement over the North American average freight ton efficiency for trucks which is 75.9 ton-miles per gallon. 10.41 MPG on the drive from Houston to Fontana. Its best section fuel economy was 11.2 MPG.

Fontana to Atlanta – Shell Starship 2.0, according to Shell, achieved 251 ton-miles per gallon for freight ton efficiency – a 3.3-times improvement over the North American average freight ton efficiency for trucks, as noted by the company. Shell Starship 2.0 achieved 10.92 MPG on the cross-country drive from Fontana to Atlanta. Its best section fuel economy was 12.1 MPG.

Shell Starship 3.0

Plans for the next generation of the Shell Starship initiative were announced at ACT Expo. According to Shell, Version 3.0 will again be updated and use the most modern technology and advanced lubricants as Shell again seeks to show what is possible for efficient Class 8 trucks now and in the future. This includes the new Cummins X15N Natural Gas engine and will look to showcase results in ton-miles of freight shipped per kg of CO₂ emitted.