DHL Freight is using eActros 300 electric trucks (etrucks) at two sites in Germany. One is being used for parts transport from the logistics provider’s Hagen site to the Mercedes-Benz Trucks axle production plant in Kassel. The other is being used to make retail customer deliveries in Koblenz. They are the first fully electric heavy tractor-trailers DHL Freight has introduced in Germany.

The eActros 300 tractor-trailers are powered by two electric engines with a peak output of up to 400 kW. The trucks have a range of approximately 220km and the battery can be recharged from 20% to 80% in about one hour and 15 minutes at a charging capacity of up to 160kW. DHL Supply Chain installed fast chargers at its sites in Hagen and Koblenz, according to a spokesperson for the company.

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The eActros 300 tractor-trailers are specially designed for regional distribution transport

“Our fully electric eActros 300 tractor-trailers are specially designed for regional distribution transport and are already capable of performing a wide range of conventional truck operations,” said Oliver Berger, network strategy and sustainability manager for inbound logistics at Mercedes-Benz Trucks. “We are pleased that the eActros 300 is now also helping to make local road freight transport carbon-free in our own site delivery operations.”

At the end of last year, Mercedes-Benz Trucks delivered 12 battery-electric trucks to its logistics providers, the first of 20 eActros 300s for use in inbound logistics. The first 12 trucks are being used for just-in-time delivery of parts to the Wörth plant in Germany from the first quarter of 2024 and together they will make around 50 journeys a day.

DHL Group said that as part of its sustainability strategy, the plan is to increase the share of electric vehicles in its delivery fleet to 60% and to increase vehicles running on sustainable fuels to more than 30%. The logistics provider is testing a range of technology as part of its drive towards more sustainable road freight transport. It said no no drive type so far has conclusively asserted itself, particularly for long distances. In another trial, DHL Freight is using a hydrogen truck from the commercial vehicle maker Paul Nutzfahrzeuge.

Dr Thomas Vogel, CEO for Germany, Austria and Switzerland, the UK and IE, at DHL Freight, said: “While we always emphasise that decarbonising transport requires the efforts of all players involved, it is something special when customers themselves supply the technology to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. We are delighted about the partnership with Mercedes-Benz Trucks, which sees both partners taking another step toward attaining their sustainability targets.”

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