Volta Trucks has ambitious plans for the U.S. market
According to the plans, Volta Trucks will initially introduce a Pilot Fleet of 100 Class 7 trucks in mid-2023 that will be evaluated by US customers, starting in Los Angeles in mid-2023, with additional cities to follow, ahead of a roll out of production vehicles in 2024. Smaller variants will follow.
Volta Trucks seems to have an entry strategy for the U.S. market. Indeed, for the North American one. The plan communicated by the newcomer in the electric truck segment will see the first Volta Zero vehicles operating on Los Angeles’ streets by the end of next year. The introduction of Volta Trucks’ 100% battery electric commercial vehicles into North America will be led in 2023 by a Volta Zero Class 7 truck which is equivalent to the existing European 16-ton truck, with a dry or refrigerated cargo box.
With more than 6,000 vehicle pre-orders in hand, from some of Europe’s largest fleet operators, it is time to expand our geographic horizons and look towards the significant market opportunity in North America. I believe our full-electric truck will be perfectly suited to the US customer’s needs, and we look forward to engaging customers to gain feedback on our product and services, then testing and learning as we look to exceed their expectations
Carl-Magnus Norden, Founder of Volta Trucks
Volta Trucks in the U.S. When and how?
As a matter of fact, some of the key suppliers of the Volta Zero trucks are U.S.-based, such as Proterra for the battery packs or Meritor for the compact e-axle. According to the plans, Volta Trucks will initially introduce a Pilot Fleet of 100 Class 7 trucks in mid-2023 that will be evaluated by US customers, starting in Los Angeles in mid-2023, with additional cities to follow, ahead of a roll out of production vehicles in 2024.
To date, Volta Trucks has built 24 road-going ‘Design Verification’ prototypes which are currently undergoing a rigorous and extensive testing program in Europe. Ahead of the introduction in North America, the company expects to have already built more than 1,500 full-electric Class 7 trucks for European customers.
The smaller variants, also in North America
The 33,000 lbs. Class 7 Volta Zero introduction will be closely followed by a Class 5 vehicle of 19,500lbs., and a Class 6 truck of 26,000lbs., equivalent to the European 7.5- and 12-ton vehicles, in 2024/2025. The Class 5 and 6 trucks will be identical to each other from the front, with the Class 6 vehicle having a longer chassis and body, and second set of rear wheels and tyres, to accommodate the increased vehicle payload.
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Using the same approach as it has adopted in Europe, Volta Trucks will develop its own ‘Volta Trucks Hubs’ for vehicle service and maintenance. Hubs will be located close to its customer’s own logistics centers to maximize uptime and convenience. The company will also develop an extensive network of third-party facilities to increase the geographic coverage of service and maintenance outlets.
As for manufacturing, work is now underway to kick-off initial US-based manufacturing with an experienced partner, with agreements expected later in 2022. The first Class 7 vehicles delivered to the US will be built at the company’s existing contract manufacturing facility in Steyr, Austria.
