Volvo Trucks and DHL pioneer long distance electric trucks
We are all aware of battery electric trucks and their potential for urban delivery work but now one of the leading road freight providers in Europe, and Volvo Trucks have partnered to speed up the introduction of heavy-duty electric trucks to be used for regional transport in Europe.
DHL Freight and Volvo Trucks have initiated a project focusing on longer distance heavy transport and they will collaborate exclusively on the first pilot tests of a fully electric Volvo FH truck with gross combination weights up to 60 tonnes. The truck will operate between DHL Freight logistics in Jönköping in Sweden and Volvo Trucks in Gothenburg a distance of 150km and charging will be done at both locations. The truck will be part of Volvo research and development process as they gain important experience and information regarding the setup and operation of an adequate charging infrastructure. In particular they will collect data to help charging optimisation, load weight and charging points in daily road freight operations.
“Our aim is to reduce all logistics-related emissions to zero. Important milestones have already been achieved in meeting this. Compared to 2007, our Group’s CO2 efficiency has improved by 35%. However, we need innovative technological solutions and strong partnerships along this journey,” says Uwe Brinks, CEO at DHL Freight. “I’m confident that our strong cooperation with Volvo Trucks, one of the major truck brands in the world, will support us in achieving our ambitious environmental goals in the road freight sector.”
“The transport business is changing rapidly and to be sustainable is an increasingly important business advantage for many of our customers,” says Roger Alm, President at Volvo Trucks. “We offer effective transport solutions that help make a fast transition to fossil-free fuels such as electricity. We have a longstanding relationship with DHL. Their broad and global expertise in logistics allows us to study the conditions to progress with this technology shift, adapting it to customer needs and their type of transport operation. Our commitment is that our entire truck sales range will be fossil-free by 2040 at the latest”
Volvo electric FL and FLE
Let’s not forget Volvo Trucks already have two offerings in the urban delivery sector with the Volvo FL Electric and Volvo FE Electric trucks, already in serial production. Indeed DHL Supply Chain recently put a new Volvo FL Electric into operation in London which was the first purpose-built fully electric Volvo truck for city distribution in the UK. Across the Atlantic, Volvo Trucks in North America last year started sales of the VNR Electric, and this year will mark the start of sales in Europe of the heavy-duty electric product range.
Click here to read about Mercedes-Benz electric truck testing