More and more logistics companies are using electric trucks. The electric models tested in the first pilot projects are mostly designed for use in urban areas since large ranges with a fully electric drive still entail technical challenges and high costs. DPD Switzerland recently started using an electric long-haul truck with what the company says has the highest capacity vehicle battery available in Europe.
The electric vehicle introduced by DPDgroup Switzerland comes from the Swiss electric-truck brand Futuricum. The Futuricum Logistics 18E model was delivered in mid-March and will initially be used on a route between a DPD depot in Möhlin in the canton of Aargau and the distribution centre in Buchs in the canton of Zurich, Germany.
The electric truck is based on a Volvo chassis and it has a 680 kWh battery, the largest currently available on an electric truck in Europe. The battery that weighs 4.5 tons allows the electric truck a range of up to 760 km with a charge. Thanks to the recovery of braking energy, the vehicle is highly efficient, according to Futuricum.
The electric drive with 500 kW (680 hp) consists of four electric motors. The battery also has the advantage that it is 91% recyclable, and the cell materials can be recovered.
With its equipment, the e-truck can completely replace a truck with a combustion engine and provide its service without restrictions on all routes. It is therefore the first electric long-distance truck that will not roll in a test environment.
The Futuricum Logistics 18E should drive at least 80,000 kilometres per year. According to the manufacturer, it saves 90 kilograms of CO2 per hundred kilometres. In the DPD Switzerland depots, it is charged exclusively with local green electricity.
Last summer, DPD Switzerland ordered a Futuricum Logistics 18E electric truck from local manufacturer Designwerk Products AG.
By 2025, the DPDgroup wants to reduce its CO2 emissions from parcel transport by 30% compared to 2013 levels.
DPD Switzerland has ordered a purely electrically powered Futuricum Logistics 18E truck from the Swiss company Designwerk Products AG in Winterthur. The Logistics 18E electric truck from Designwerk has a range of up to 760 kilometres.… Continue reading
The Canadian manufacturer Lion Electric, which was previously known for its electric school buses, is expanding its range of electric utility vehicles with the launch of its first electric truck called Lion8 - a Class 8 vehicle… Continue reading
Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles (FCEVs) have been praised as a promising alternative to battery electric vehicles (BEVs) for long-distance transport, especially for heavy trucks that need more space and power. However, a Cambridge professor and… Continue reading
Renault Trucks has signed a contract with the Carlsberg Group for the delivery of 20 fully electric 26-ton D-type ZE trucks. The electric trucks are to be delivered to the Swiss brewery Feldschlösschen later this year. The heavy… Continue reading
