Using a motorized arm, a worker at Volvo’s plant in Gothenburg, Sweden, slowly moves giant black blocks along a chassis: three tons of batteries that will soon power an electric truck, the flagship of the world’s No. 2 in the industry.
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“This is where the difference makes a difference,” explains Sandra Finer, vice president of site operations. “On the production line we use the same people and the same equipment, but instead of a diesel engine we put an electrical module there.”
Electric trucks are now being mass-produced by several major manufacturers in Europe, North America and China and are hitting the road faster than expected, although there is still a long way to go to replace polluting diesel.
“We live in very exciting times,” Felipe Rodriguez, an independent expert at the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) analysis group, told AFP.
“Four or five years ago people would have said to you, ‘You’re crazy, this is never going to work.’ “Diesel is king, it’s unbeatable.”
Electric trucks require a lot of energy to move their many tons and raise questions about their autonomy or charging, which requires far more powerful terminals than cars.
However, driven in particular by ever stricter regulations by the European Union to reduce CO2 emissions and by the massive support of the Chinese state for its national manufacturers, the industry now seems to be convinced that we will not work. return.
“The industry realized they couldn’t keep their diesel engines forever,” says Rodriguez. “And now there’s a race on to actually develop these electric trucks and bring them to market.”
In 2022, electric trucks accounted for just a tiny fraction — 1% to 2% — of the world’s major markets, with a total of 40,000 to 50,000 units sold, most of them in China, according to data from consulting firms.
But the main Western manufacturers like the German Daimler and MAN, Volvo and its French subsidiary Renault Trucks or the other Swedish Scania have invested heavily.
After its success in the electric car, the American Tesla is also showing its ambitions in this segment with its “Semi”, which promises an autonomy of up to 800 kilometers.
The pie is sizeable: The global truck market weighs more than $200 billion a year, with nearly 6 million units sold.
“In 2030, 50% of the Volvo trucks we sell should be emission-free (…) and in 2040 everything has to be like that,” Roger Alm, head of the Volvo Group’s truck division, told AFP.
The ICTT estimates that the share of sales is roughly equivalent to that required to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement for the decarbonisation of road transport.
According to the analysis company, a diesel truck emits around 1 kilo of CO2 per kilometer. Even with the current European electricity mix, which still includes a significant share of coal and gas, an electric truck reduces this carbon footprint by two-thirds.
Nevertheless, according to ICCT, the share of electricity in Europe should reach 90% in 2040.
“Things are really picking up speed in Northern Europe and North America. Now it’s moving south, to Europe, but also to other markets in Africa, Australia, Brazil, country by country,” says Alm.
According to Volvo, an electric truck is currently around two to three times more expensive than a diesel, but prices are likely to fall sharply and operating costs will fall.
Along with other manufacturers, the Swedish giant has joined a major European plan to multiply charging stations for trucks, one of the weak points at the moment.
To charge a truck quickly and fully, you need terminals that are about ten times more powerful than those for fast charging cars, emphasizes Rodriguez.
To counteract range problems, several manufacturers have decided to invest in a different electrical technology: the fuel cell truck, which uses hydrogen to generate electricity.
Last week Volvo tested such a truck on the open road – the first in the world – which is expected to take a few years to really take off.