The world of electric trucks is becoming diverse as manufacturers offer alternatives to the city e-distribution option. Gordon Roberts travelled to Sweden to try out two of Volvo Truck’s latest battery-powered products more akin to the heavy end of the market; an FMX Electric eight-wheeler Tridem and an FM Electric tractor.
ESTABLISHED truck manufacturers are beginning to flex their muscles. While newcomers concentrate on the low hanging fruit that deliver goods (including fruit) into the urban markets, OEMs like Volvo Truck are moving to the next level.
Market-wide viable green solutions for the trunking, distance work and construction sectors are still up in the air. More operators see biofuels for internal combustion engines as the immediate answer but there are issues over volume and supply. Meanwhile hydrogen for the mass markets is still being developed.
For the moment the closest alternative to fossil fuel is battery electric and the Gothenburg based manufacturer is in the process of electrifying its entire truck range from 16.7 to 44 tonnes. Both FL and FE Electric trucks (16.7 to 27 tonnes) are already in production in group partnership with Renault Trucks in France.
