Volvo Trucks has announced it’s selling its Volvo FL and Volvo FE electric trucks in selected markets within Europe for use in cities.

The company says that the absence of exhaust emissions and with reduced noise levels, electric trucks offer huge potential in urban areas. First, the low noise levels make it possible to operate early in the morning, late evenings or even at night, helping reduce congestion during peak hours. Second, with better air quality and less noise, electric trucks create new opportunities for city planning and road infrastructure. An electric truck can, for example, be used in indoor loading areas and environmental zones.

“Global urbanisation requires urban logistics and truck transport with zero emissions and less noise with increasing urgency,” said Jonas Odermalm, VP Product Line Electromobility. “With the Volvo FL Electric and Volvo FE Electric we are able to meet the strong environmental demands and the high commercial requirements of our customers.

 A major challenge with electric trucks is to maximise the payload and optimise the driving range. “Volvo Trucks’ solutions will be based on individual business needs that consider a number of parameters, such as driving cycles, load capacity and route analysis, to use the battery capacity in the most efficient way possible,” said Jonas. “While customer feedback has been positive we do recognise that charging infrastructure is still under development in most cities and we are working alongside both public and private partners to agree on a long-term strategy for the expansion of charging infrastructure. But it’s clear that the pace of development of charging infrastructure needs to increase.”

Volvo FL Electric and Volvo FE Electric: the facts
The Volvo FL Electric and Volvo FE Electric trucks have been developed for distribution, refuse handling and other urban transport applications.

• Sales will start in Sweden, Norway, Germany, Switzerland, France and The Netherlands.
• The start of serial production is planned for March 2020.
• The Volvo FL Electric has capacity for a GVW (gross vehicle weight) of 16 tonnes, while the GVW of the Volvo FE Electric is 27 tonnes.