Austrian Post: we are on the road electrically for the first time in transport logistics
Austrian Post has put two e-trucks into operation for the first time. After electric vehicles have been used in deliveries since 2011, transport logistics is now also electric for the first time. The two e-trucks will now commute between the logistics center in Vienna-Inzersdorf and Vienna-Schwechat Airport to pick up or deliver international shipments. The two e-trucks are specially foiled and clearly visible to attentive observers. Two fast-charging stations for the trucks were installed at the Inzersdorf site for this purpose, and only green electricity from Austria is used for charging.
“With the use of the two e-trucks, we are on the road electrically for the first time in transport logistics. By using the new e-trucks and green electricity, we can replace two diesel vehicles and thus save around 117 tons of direct CO2 emissions per year. In doing so, we are taking a first step into the future of transport logistics, while at the same time remaining open to technology when it comes to the use of green hydrogen or e-fuels over longer distances, for example,” explains Peter Umundum, Director of the Board of Management for Parcel & Logistics, Austrian Post.
Compared to Austrian Post’s requirements for long-haul transport of several hundred kilometres at a time, the range and payload of the available trucks are still very limited. In the run-up to the event, vehicle manufacturers were therefore surveyed and route profiles on different routes were simulated in order to enable the sensible use of this new technology. Together with the “Council for Sustainable Logistics”, a one-month practical test of an e-truck was also carried out and finally the commute between the logistics centre and the airport was found to be the optimal application for e-trucks at Austrian Post.
Volvo emerged as the winner of a tender with the FM Electric. The configuration used by Austrian Post relies on a 6×2 chassis with box body and tail lift. The battery capacity of 540 kilowatt hours (kWh) enables a range of up to 300 kilometres, and with the help of Alpitronic’s Hypercharger, the battery can be fully charged in two and a half hours. The Volvo FM Electric is powered by three electric motors with I-Shift transmissions, which enable a continuous output of up to 490 kilowatts (kW) and a gross combination weight of up to 44 tonnes.
The total investment costs for the two e-trucks, including charging infrastructure, amount to just under one million euros. The purchase was funded by the European Union’s “Emission-Free Commercial Vehicles and Infrastructure (ENIN)” funding program, the Federal Ministry for Climate Action, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology and the Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG).