The commercial vehicle manufacturer Daimler trucks wants its electric truck for long-haul routes from the end of November Mercedes Benz Series production at the Wörth plant. With a battery capacity of over 600 kilowatt hours (kWh), the eActros 600 will enable a range of 500 kilometers without intermediate charging, as the company announced on Sunday at an event before the IAA Transportation International Motor Show in Hanover.
This means that ranges of more than 1,000 kilometers are possible during the day if intermediate charging is carried out during the prescribed driver breaks. According to Daimler Truck, it achieved the range with a total train weight of 40 tons.
The long-distance transport segment is ready for this DaxAccording to the group, it accounts for two thirds of the exhaust emissions of climate-damaging carbon dioxide (CO₂) in truck traffic. So far, providers have focused on electric commercial vehicles for inner-city delivery traffic or medium-haul routes. In this traffic, the range does not play as important a role as it does for long-distance traffic. Because of the high weight of the electric batteries, fuel cell trucks are also considered promising. Daimler Truck is pushing forward the fuel cell as a drive in the joint venture Cellcentric with its Swedish rival Volvo.
CO₂ emissions from new trucks must fall drastically
At the beginning of the year, the EU Parliament and the member states agreed on stricter emissions regulations for heavy commercial vehicles over 7.5 tons, which will come onto the market from 2030. The CO₂ emissions in the newly sold truck fleet are expected to fall by 45 percent between 2030 and 2034 compared to 2019. In 2035 and 2040 the requirements will become even tougher.
Different rules apply to city buses and commercial vehicles such as garbage trucks or concrete mixers. Next year, particularly heavy trucks over 16 tons will have to emit at least 15 percent fewer greenhouse gases on average than in 2019.
In order for the industry to meet the targets in 2030, the share of zero-emission trucks in new sales – whether with battery or fuel cell drive – must increase to 40 percent, according to calculations by the management consultancy McKinsey. Most recently it was below 2 percent.
According to the experts, the charging network is a big problem, as is the case with cars: around 900,000 privately financed charging points are needed here by 2035, and around 20 billion US dollars (18 billion euros) would have to be invested. However, slow approval processes and network connections for truck charging parks are major obstacles.
Daimler Truck announced the Mercedes-Benz eActros 600 at the IAA two years ago. For Daimler Truck, the IAA Transportation 2024 is now all about implementation, said current CEO Martin Daum (64). “We deliver battery-electric series vehicles in the quantities that our customers demand.”
Daimler Truck has recorded 2,000 orders for the eActros 600 since sales began at the end of last year, and declarations of intent are also in the four-digit range. With its high energy efficiency, the truck will be profitable for fleet operators, said Mercedes-Benz truck boss Karin Radström (45). The Swede will take over as CEO of the Daum Group at the beginning of October
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