GREENSBORO, N.C. — Volvo VNR electric Class 8 trucks will be available for order beginning Dec. 3, with production expected to begin early next year, Volvo Trucks North America announced Nov. 5. The zero-emission trucks will be produced at Volvo’s New River Valley manufacturing plant in Dublin, Virginia.
“Volvo Trucks is committed to lead the commercial transport industry towards more sustainable solutions by advancing electromobility. We will continue to invest in and drive the development of this technology, both globally and right here in North America,” said Peter Voorhoeve, president of Volvo Trucks North America. “We are excited to bring the Volvo VNR Electric to the market in just a few weeks.”
Volvo Trucks, as a global organization, also announced Nov. 5, at the Volvo Group Capital Markets Day, that it will offer a complete range of electric heavy-duty trucks in Europe in 2021. In addition, Volvo Trucks plans, during this decade, to develop electric vehicles for heavy long-haul operations, including battery-electric and fuel-cell electric trucks with a longer range. Volvo Trucks plans to start selling electric trucks powered by hydrogen fuel cells in the second half of the decade, with an objective of having a fossil-free product range by 2040.
“By rapidly increasing the number of heavy-duty electric trucks, we want to help our customers and transport buyers to achieve their ambitious sustainability goals,” said Roger Alm, president of Volvo Trucks Corp. “We’re determined to continue driving our industry toward a sustainable future.”
According to a statement from Volvo Trucks, the manufacturer hopes to make the shift to sustainable, zero-emissions transport as smooth as possible for fleet operators by offering fossil-free solutions that allow carriers to maintain profitability and productivity.
“As part of the very successful Volvo LIGHTS project, which we started in 2019 in Southern California in collaboration with 14 other pioneering organizations, we validated the viability and reliability of the Volvo VNR Electric in real-world operations and proved what it takes to create a holistic, end-to-end electromobility solution to drive true sustainability in the trucking industry,” Voorhoeve said. “We are fully confident in bringing this new technology to the commercial market.”
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