Commercial EVs

EV automaker Karma Automotive is further focusing its production strategy to support commercial EVs, more specifically B-ON, under a new manufacturing partnership announced this week. Karma will begin production this year at its ISO-certified facility in California with the capability to produce up to 30,000 electric vehicles annually with the intent to expand from there to meet the demand for B-ON’s vehicles.

EV mobility developer REE Automotive has publicly revealed who will supply the battery packs to its modular platforms. Microvast has signed a supply agreement with REE to provide its high-energy lithium-ion battery packs to “Powered by REE” modular EV technology as the latter works to bring commercial EVs to market, beginning with the P7 platform.

Ahead of its start of series production next quarter, commercial EV startup Volta Trucks announced it has locked in customer orders for over 300 of its all-electric Volta Zero trucks. These orders alone secure a huge chunk of the company’s overall production targets for 2023, representing customer demand and cause for optimism as Volta Trucks finally looks to begin initial EV deliveries and expand to additional markets.

Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles has released its annual numbers for 2022 and is reporting strong output for its vehicles, including a doubling of EV deliveries dominated by the ID.Buzz electric van. Better still, the number of Buzz vans delivered last year is a mere fraction of what Volkswagen already has in its order books.

Electric mobility company Waev has just named Alfredo Arroyo as the chief operations officer and a senior vice president of the company.

Pilot Company and Volvo Group have signed a letter of intent to co-develop a charging network across Pilot and Flying J travel centers, catered specifically toward medium- and heavy-duty EVs. Both companies look to reduce carbon footprints on populated roadways by overtaking some of the infrastructural roadblocks currently inhibiting widespread adoption of commercial EVs.

During a presentation at IAA Transportation in Germany this week, Chinese EV manufacturer Build Your Dreams (BYD) has shared a myriad of new commercial EV technologies that will initially debut in Europe. The most prominent of the bunch is BYD’s new eBus platform, which is powered by BYD’s durable Blade Batteries, currently being used in its passenger EVs.

Commercial EV startup Volta Trucks has shared another major milestone in its lightning fast 12-month journey in bringing its flagship Zero truck into production. The very first Volta Zero truck has rolled off its assembly line in Austria, kicking off a series of validation prototypes for customers before full commercial production next year.

EV freight technology company Einride has announced its expansion into Germany, the EU’s largest transportation market. The company will bring its electrified and autonomous freight shipping technology to the country, backed by a new Einride regional office and local logistical hubs. It also has a list of German partners already in place.

EV freight technology company Einride has announced what feels like a match made in heaven. The autonomous and connected electric truck maker will provide sustainable, plant-based meat company Beyond Meat, with a number of electric freight vehicles to support its shipping network as part of a five-year plan to scale the sustainable operations across Beyond Meat’s entire US operations.

Modular transportation developer REE Automotive has debuted the P7-B, a novel Class 3 box truck designed and built by REE to target the most in-demand vehicle type in the commercial segment. The truck sits atop REE Automotive’s P7 cab chassis and is powered by the company’s proprietary REEcorner technology.

Volvo Trucks North America is joining forces with a bunch of other companies, including Shell Recharge, to implement a fast-charging network on the West Coast dedicated to supporting medium- and heavy-duty commercial EVs. The California Electrified Charging Corridor will combine several major metropolitan cities across Northern and Southern California with high-powered charging infrastructure.

AMPLY Power announced the deployment of its new “Powered by AMPLY” Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) model, beginning with a new partnership with commercial EV manufacturer Lightning eMotors. Lightning eMotors’ future EVs will feature AMPLY’s OMEGA charge management software.

In what the companies are calling a “world’s first,” commercial vehicle manufacturer Scania AB has delivered its first electric timber truck to SCA – Europe’s largest private forest owner. The all-electric timber truck has a massive capacity of 80 tons and represents Sweden’s next step in becoming an entirely fossil fuel-free society.

Autonomous EV freight company Einride has received approval from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to operate its Autonomous Electric Transport (AET) trucks on public roads in the US. These Pod trucks will begin driving under a public road pilot operated by a Remote Pod Operator.

During its inaugural Einride Mesh technology conference, autonomous EV freight company Einride introduced new software and hardware products. This included updates to its Saga operating system as well as the debut of the new Einride Trailer – a design concept that brings end-to-end payload intelligence along with added overall range from its integrated battery.

Electric vehicle technology company and platform provider REE Automotive has offered two updates to its progress in the commercial EV segment. First, REE has proven its cloud-based robotic assembly approach and is on schedule to implement it in the UK followed by the US. Additionally, REE has teased its first commercial EV developed alongside JB Poindexter subsidiary, EAVX. REE Automotive and EAVX’s walk-in van prototype will begin customer evaluations this summer.

Lightning eMotors announced a partnership with Perrone Robotics to integrate Level 2 and Level 4 autonomous capabilities into its medium-duty electric fleet vehicles. By utilizing Perrone’s TONY retrofit autonomy kit, Lightning eMotors can now offer Class 3-7 commercial EVs that can self-drive in a range of scenarios.

During a presentation at WasteExpo 2022 in Las Vegas, XL Fleet unveiled its all-electric pre-series powertrain on a Quantum garbage truck as part of collaboration with Curbtender, Inc. This pre-series vehicle is the first toward production models the companies plan to build in 2022. 

Commercial EV manufacturer Volta Trucks has shared a roadmap outlining plans to bring its all-electric Zero trucks to the United States next year. Its strategy will include the 16-ton Volta Zero truck to begin, followed by Class 5 and 6 variants. Additionally, Volta Trucks is searching for a manufacturing partner on US soil to begin building the Zero trucks before year’s end.

Commercial EV manufacturer Volta Trucks has publicly debuted two new variations of its 16-ton Volta Zero. The forthcoming 7.5- and 12-ton variants will complete a four model range Volta Zero trucks and provide smaller and more maneuverable transportation to commercial fleets compared to their larger predecessors.