Anticipating widespread demand for electric options in the medium-duty and heavy-duty vehicle space, Volvo Trucks is now taking orders in Europe for the new fully electric FH and FM models. Customers increasingly desire electric trucks because they minimize CO2 as well as noise and air pollution, they comply with strict sound levels and emission regulations that more and more cities are adopting, and they offer a lower total cost of ownership as compared to diesel alternatives.
To ease the shift away from legacy vehicles, Volvo Trucks’ chassis are designed to be independent of the fuel choice. This means that a customer can purchase multiples of the same model, with the only difference being the powertrain. Depending on the battery configuration, vehicle range may exceed 175 miles.
Volvo Trucks’ 6-vehicle electric lineup, five of which are being marketed in Europe, is comprised of the following:
- FH Electric, for regional and intercity transport (heavy-duty)
- FM Electric, a versatile truck for heavy local transports and regional distribution (heavy-duty)
- FMX Electric, for cleaner and quieter construction transport (heavy-duty)
- FE Electric, for local and city distribution, waste transport (medium-duty)
- FL Electric, for local and city distribution (medium-duty)
- VNR Electric, for regional and intercity transport (U.S. market) (medium-duty)
Volvo Trucks anticipates that customers will transition to electric in stages, and the company’s objective is for its entire product range to be fossil-free by 2040. “There is huge potential to electrify truck transports in Europe, and also in other parts of the world, in the very near future,” says Roger Alm, President of Volvo Trucks. “To prove this, we have set the ambitious goal to have electric trucks account for half of our sales in Europe by 2030. And these three new heavy-duty trucks we are now launching mark a giant step towards reaching this target.”
For more information about EVs and EV charging, I invite you to follow me on LinkedIn and view my other posts.