E-trucks in practice: Growing range, more flexibility
By Frank Zscheile I 4 minute read
24/03/2025
Heavy-duty e-trucks with sufficient battery capacity to cover longer distances are coming onto the market only gradually. However, DACHSER already has large e-trucks proving their suitability for everyday use in its network. Not only do they excel in distribution transport, but they are also regularly assigned to other routes with longer driving times.
Concerns about range have held back e-mobility until now. However, a look at practice shows that electric trucks can now be used in practice. One example from the DACHSER network is the national company in the Czech Republic. A Volvo FH Electric has been in operation there since July 2023, celebrating a milestone after sixteen months: The commercial vehicle has covered over 200,000 kilometers. The battery-electric truck is on the road during the day and at night and can cover around 330 kilometers on a single charge – this shows how well electromobility can now also work in the logistics sector and over long distances and in continuous use – provided that sufficient electricity and charging infrastructure are available.
Electrification in heavy-duty transport
And the Czech Republic is just one example. The DACHSER network now has a whole range of electric vehicles in use across Germany and beyond. For example, the Dortmund branch has been operating three battery-electric heavy-duty trucks for around a year; during the day for customers in the region and at night for long-distance transport. Several e-trucks are also in use at the Karlsruhe branch. One of them is a Volvo FH Electric, which drives over 500 km in system traffic to Regensdorf in Switzerland and back. It’s used for customer pickups by day and drives to Frankfurt Airport at night. Drivers top up their truck’s battery whenever they take a break, and the truck is expected to cover a total of 230,000 kilometers per year on battery power.
In December 2024, twelve new Mercedes-Benz eActros 600s were delivered to the German-Austrian DACHSER subsidiary Brummer Logistik in the German town of Neuburg am Inn. The 40-ton battery-electric trucks are expected to have a range of 500 km without intermediate charging. Daimler Trucks started large-scale production of the eActros just recently, and Brummer Logistik will integrate them into its transport planning as a replacement for conventional diesel trucks, using them for regional and long-distance food transport.
Alexander Tonn, COO Road Logistics at DACHSER, says: “More and more battery-electric tractor units are now coming onto the market for heavy goods transport, and e-trucks are offering increased ranges.” For Brummer Logistik, the 500 km range was also a key factor in its decision to rely on e-mobility in the future. A further 14 Mercedes-Benz eActros 600s are to be deployed at six DACHSER locations in Europe over the next few months. The manufacturer MAN also recently delivered heavy-duty trucks with electric drives to DACHSER.
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new Mercedes-Benz eActros 600s were delivered to the German-Austrian DACHSER subsidiary Brummer Logistik in the German town of Neuburg am Inn.
Driving electromobility forward
In these ways, DACHSER is pushing ahead with the shift to zero-emission powertrains and positioning itself as an impulse generator when it comes to sustainability in logistics. It’s now transporting goods using battery-electric vehicles (BEV) at various locations in Europe in order to gain further experience in short-distance and, in particular, long-distance transport. In Freiburg, Hamburg, and Karlsruhe, DACHSER’s e-mobility locations are conducting practical tests and research into climate-friendly technologies, charging infrastructure, and setting up suitable electricity and load management.
Charging infrastructure is one of the areas in which the e-mobility locations provide the company with important empirical data. That’s because in the future, further investment will be necessary at locations throughout the network—as well as in the public charging infrastructure and the supply of electricity, of course. One focus is on fast charging so that the e-trucks aren’t standing idle for too long. Over the past few months, Brummer Logistik has installed fast-charging stations in Neuburg am Inn, with a total of eleven fixed and two mobile charge spots, where the new e-trucks can be quickly charged at up to 400 kW.
New fast-charging stations have also been installed in Dortmund and Karlsruhe. DACHSER charges its fleet exclusively with green electricity—another piece of the puzzle on the road to decarbonization in logistics. Work still needs to be done on megawatt charging at highway rest areas, which is an important step in the transition from diesel to e-trucks. Until then, long-haul journeys with e-trucks will continue to need careful planning.
