Volvo will launch electric truck next year jaar

Volvo has announced the FL Electric, a fully electric truck. The manufacturer is considering applications for waste collection, which can then take place at night because of the quiet operation of the truck.

It is the first in a series of fully electric Volvo trucks that the company will offer commercially, Claes Nilsson, president of Volvo Trucks, announced. The company thinks that the trucks will mainly be used in the city, where they can function in covered terminals, in environmental zones and at night, among other things.

Series production and sales will start next year, but the trucks are already driving in Volvo’s home base Gothenburg. The maximum power of the electric motor is 185kW, or 252hp, and 130kW continuously. There is a maximum torque of 425Nm. The FL Electric contains two to six lithium-ion batteries with a maximum capacity of 100 to 300 kWh. This means the range is up to 300 km.

With fast charging via direct current it takes one to two hours for an empty battery to be fully charged, with charging via alternating current it can take up to ten hours. There are more manufacturers working on electric trucks. At the end of last year, Tesla showed a test model, the Semi, with Autopilot. This should be available by the end of 2019. Mercedes-Benz is also releasing electric trucks, but it is not expected until 2020.