Volta Zero 16-tonne e-truck launched

Volta Zero electric trucks will be made in the United Kingdom starting 2022, with trials of 12 pilot fleet vehicles planned early next year.

The 16-tonne commercial vehicle includes flax and biodegradable resin composite in exterior body panels developed by Bcomp with the European Space Agency, which means the truck is almost entirely carbon neutral, Volta Trucks says in launching the Volta Zero this week.

The Zero is designed for inner-city parcel and freight distribution and will help cities globally move to zero emissions, the company says.

“Commercial vehicles form the lifeblood of commerce and livelihoods in cities, but today’s large trucks dangerously impose themselves on our streets and dominate their surroundings,” Volta Trucks chief executive Rob Fowler says.

“By 2025, we aim to have saved around 180,000 tonnes of CO2 from the atmosphere.

“With the launch of the Volta Zero, we are changing the face of road transport.”

The truck has 150-200km range, includes an innovative e-Axle for enhanced efficiency and range, and offers the latest advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), with safety, sustainability, and electrification key.

The Volta Zero uses lithium iron phosphate batteries providing 160-200 kWh of power, the battery able to be recycled and reused as an energy storage device.

It has an 8600kg payload, with an overall volume of 37.7m3 and is designed to accommodate 16 Euro pallets.

About 9.460m long, 3.47m high and 2.55m wide, the Volta Zero has a 4.80m wheelbase and is limited to a top speed of 90km/h, the design allowing it to easily use narrow city streets

With 90% less mechanical parts than an equivalent internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicle, Volta Trucks targets the same total cost of ownership, supporting the business case to migrate to electric vehicles.

A ‘Truck as a Service’ proposition offers a single monthly fee that provides access to a full-electric Volta Zero vehicle, and servicing, maintenance, insurance and training requirements – providing a replacement Volta Zero when needed.

A refrigerated cargo box will also be available, the vehicle’s battery integrated for the cooling and refrigeration unit.

Optimised for the safety of vulnerable road users, the Zero includes a glasshouse-style cab with 220-degrees visibility and uses rear view cameras instead of mirrors, designed to deliver a Transport for London five-star Direct Vision Standard rating.

“Safety is at the heart of the Volta brand for one simple reason,” Volta Trucks founder Carl-Magnus Norden says.

“In London, as an example, 23% of pedestrian fatalities and 58% of cyclist deaths involve an HGV, yet large trucks only account for 4% of road miles.

“This is clearly unacceptable and must change. The Volta Zero completely reimagines the commercial vehicle, ensuring it can operate safely with all road users and become a friend of the zero-emission city”.

The driver sits in a central driving position with a swivel seat and has easy access through fast opening sliding doors on either side of the cabin, also benefiting from a technical status monitoring system, based on artificial intelligence, that avoids breakdowns and maximises vehicle uptime.

By the end of 2022, Volta Trucks aims to build 500 customer-specification vehicles, rising to 5000 vehicles annually by 2025, and increasing thereafter.

Volta Trucks is based in Stockholm, Sweden, but most of its business operations are undertaken in the UK where it will develop a UK head office and aftersales facility in West London.