Volvo Trucks announced the start of sales of its Volvo FL and Volvo FE electric trucks (earlier post) in selected markets within Europe, meeting the increasing demand for sustainable transport solutions in city environments.

Volvo FL Electric and Volvo FE Electric were developed in close collaboration with selected customers operating in Gothenburg, Sweden. Feedback has been very positive, and the drivers involved in the collaboration are particularly impressed by the responsive driveline, seamless acceleration and how quiet the trucks are.

Global urbanization requires urban logistics and truck transport with zero emissions and less noise with increasing urgency. With the Volvo FL Electric and Volvo FE Electric we are able to meet both the strong environmental demands as well as the high commercial requirements of our customers.

—Jonas Odermalm, VP Product Line Electromobility

One challenge is to maximize the payload at the same time as optimizing 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.

Electric vehicles, charged with electricity from renewable sources, are indeed a powerful step towards more sustainable city distribution. However, there will not be one singular energy source that addresses climate change and all other environmental issues. Different types of transport require different types of driveline solutions.

—Jonas Odermalm

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

Sales will start in Sweden, Norway, Germany, Switzerland, France and the Netherlands. The start of serial production is planned for March 2020.