Renault Trucks to add two electric trucks to lineup by 2023

Renault Trucks is expanding its electric portfolio and has announced the market launch of two new 44-tonner models for the first quarter of 2023: the Renault Trucks T E-Tech for long-distance transport and the Renault Trucks C E-Tech for construction site transport. Plans are also underway for another freight-carrying electric truck.

The new models will be produced at the Renault Trucks plant in Bourg-en-Bresse, France. They are available in various versions: as 4×2 and 6×2 semitrailer tractors and as 4×2, 6×2 and 8×4 tridem vehicles. The Renault Trucks T and C E-Tech have two and three electric motors, respectively, with a total output of up to 490 kW (666 hp) and are also equipped with an Optidriver transmission.

Depending on customer requirements, the vehicles have two to six lithium-ion battery packs with a capacity of 180 to 540 kWh. A full charge of the vehicle’s batteries can be completed in 9.5 hours with alternating current (up to 43 kW) or 2.5 hours with direct current (up to 250 kW), according to the French company. The range on a single charge is up to 300 kilometres, according to the manufacturer. With an additional one-hour fast charge (250 kW), it can be extended to 500 kilometres, Renault Trucks says.

With the expansion of its electric range, Renault Trucks is taking another step in its e-mobility strategy and goals: By 2030, the manufacturer aims to generate 50 per cent of its sales from electric vehicles. By 2040, 100 per cent of marketed vehicles are to be locally CO2-neutral.

Another vehicle is in the planning stage – for freight transport in inner cities. For the new project, called ‘Oxygen’, Renault Trucks has teamed up with Geodis, the freight division of the French state railroad SNCF. The two companies want to combine their expertise and develop an all-new electric 16-ton truck at a similar cost (TCO) to a diesel vehicle, Renault says. All the constraints and uses of urban delivery traffic will be taken into account.

“The environmental emergency combined with the growth of e-Commerce and the implementation of low-emission zones in major French cities mean that we urgently need to step up the decarbonisation of transport,” explains Marie-Christine Lombard, CEO of Geodis. “This is the objective of GEODIS in forming this partnership with Renault Trucks. We want to quickly provide concrete answers to the issue of sustainable urban logistics.”

Delivery of the prototype produced at Renault Trucks’ French plant in Blainville-sur-Orne is scheduled for the end of 2022. In 2023, the vehicle will be tested on Paris roads. With the findings from this, a phase of vehicle adaptation and later study to optimize the total cost of ownership will follow.

Renault Trucks also wants to provide more comprehensive support to its customers. The company has therefore restructured its offering: The previous offer Z.E. electric truck will be replaced by E-Tech, the company informs. The focus: all-round support, ranging from planning the acquisition to monitoring electric truck operations.

renault-trucks.com (new trucks), renault-trucks.com (E-Tech), renault-trucks.com (Oxygen)