Worldwide logistics business DB Schenker and MAN Truck & Bus have announced a deal which will see 100 new MAN eTrucks enter service by 2026, with first deliveries expected in 2024.
“We are very pleased to have our first customer for the new eTruck,” says Alexander Vlaskamp, CEO of MAN Truck & Bus. “The demand in the market for this fully electric vehicle is already enormous. The topic is now really picking up speed, also because more and more of our customers are setting themselves extremely ambitious decarbonisation targets. This has a direct impact on the logistics chains. However, we will only be able to achieve a sustainable mobility turnaround in heavy goods transport with the appropriate political support. This concerns, among other things, the rapid development of the charging infrastructure and also the further design of the funding framework for the acquisition of electric trucks.”
Cyrille Bonjean, Head of Land Transport at DB Schenker Europe, added: “We want to build up practical experience with e-trucks as early as possible. In this way, we can quickly create an offer for the economy to make supply chains more climate-friendly. That’s why it was important for us to get the first MAN eTrucks. This brings us another step closer to our goal of being net zero on the road in land transport by 2040.”
MAN will begin production of its eTrucks in small quantities at its Munich headquarters in H1 2024, with DB Schenker as the first pilot customer. DB Schenker aims to gain hands-on experience with the product by establishing its own charging infrastructure and utilizing digital services such as eManager and ServiceCare.
The MAN eMobility Center has been preparing for the manufacturing of eTrucks since 2021, with the goal of having conventional diesel trucks and electric trucks produced on the same assembly line during the transition to electromobility. Basic components for eTrucks will be manufactured in Nuremberg, where the company will also increase production of high-voltage batteries starting in 2025. MAN plans to invest approximately €100 million over the next five years at this location and will also benefit from a €30 million contribution from the Bavarian state government for energy research and technology financing from 2023-2027.
