---
title: "Two electric pickups and a battery trailer power a five-stop Quebec concert tour"
description: "The free Papillons tour ran sound, lights and a full kitchen on EV batteries with no diesel generator or grid hookup"
author: "rews desk"
published: 2026-09-29T15:01:52Z
modified: 2026-09-30T09:11:22Z
url: https://rews.cc/a/two-electric-pickups-and-a-battery-trailer-power-a-five-stop-bc3e4e
language: en
tags: ["ev", "batteries", "concerts", "energy", "infrastructure", "us"]
publisher: "Rews (https://rews.cc)"
---

# Two electric pickups and a battery trailer power a five-stop Quebec concert tour

*The free Papillons tour ran sound, lights and a full kitchen on EV batteries with no diesel generator or grid hookup*

By rews desk · September 29, 2026 · https://rews.cc/a/two-electric-pickups-and-a-battery-trailer-power-a-five-stop-bc3e4e

## In brief

- A five-stop Quebec concert tour ran entirely on two Chevrolet Silverado EVs and a 150 kWh battery trailer, with no generator or grid hookup
- The free Papillons tour ran August 15-22, ending in a Montreal grocery store parking lot, with artists Émile Proulx-Cloutier and Dumas
- The Silverado EV offers up to a 205 kWh battery and 7.2 to 10.2 kW of onboard power depending on trim
- A trailer-mounted 150 kWh power plant ran the kitchen at every stop; the author’s company Ixian helped engineer it
- The batteries recharge on Quebec’s grid, which Hydro-Québec says is over 99% renewable, mostly hydro

A five-stop concert tour across Quebec this summer ran entirely on power from two Chevrolet Silverado EV pickup trucks and a 150 kWh trailer-mounted battery, with no diesel generator and no connection to the grid, according to Electrek.

The free tour, called “Le goût du paysage,” ran from August 15 to 22 and ended with a show in a grocery store parking lot in Montreal’s Saint-Henri neighbourhood, where the speakers, stage lights and kitchen all ran off batteries, Electrek reported.

The tour was organised by Papillons, the Quebec company behind the RechargÉco fast-charging network, which it operates across Quebec and New Brunswick. It featured Quebec artists Émile Proulx-Cloutier and Dumas and a chef identified as Oli, who cooked free corn dishes made with regional ingredients.

Stops included Trois-Pistoles, the Vallée Bras-du-Nord in Saint-Raymond, Parc Éco-Laurentides in Mont-Blanc and Île-aux-Castors in Berthierville, where the show sold out. Papillons billed the production as “100%” powered by EV batteries with “zero emissions from start to finish.”

The two Silverado EVs powered the sound system, the stage lighting and site lights after dark. The truck can be ordered with a battery pack of up to 205 kWh, among the largest available in a consumer vehicle, and General Motors rates its onboard power output at 7.2 kW to 10.2 kW depending on the trim, Electrek reported.

By comparison, Ford’s F-150 Lightning provides up to 9.6 kW of onboard power, and Tesla recently added 2.4 kW of vehicle-to-load capability to the Model Y Premium, which requires an $80 adapter, according to Electrek.

The kitchen, whose cooking equipment draws heavy power for hours, ran on a trailer-mounted mobile power plant with 150 kWh of capacity at every stop. At the Saint-Henri show it was parked beside the kitchen tent, supplying full-size electric ranges, Electrek reported.

Electrek disclosed that Ixian, a company owned by the article’s author, helped Papillons engineer the mobile power plant, and that Papillons has not released further details about the system.

At the Montreal stop, grid power was available nearby, but obtaining a temporary connection for an event typically requires arrangements with the utility or property owner, an electrician and added cost, often for a single evening, which leads many organisers to rent diesel generators instead, Electrek reported.

At the four rural stops, including a riverside island in Berthierville and a park in the Laurentians, there is no grid access at all, so such events would normally require diesel generators or could not take place. The batteries also avoid generator noise at shows featuring quiet acoustic performances.

The trucks and the power plant recharge on Quebec’s grid, which Hydro-Québec says is more than 99% renewable, mostly from hydroelectric generation.

Electrek said the main limitation of the approach is output: at roughly 10 kW per truck, the pickups can handle sound and lighting but not an entire event. The outlet said festivals, film shoots and construction sites, which commonly run rented diesel generators, are a natural application for mobile battery power that can be recharged at charging stations between stops.