Taking yet another major step into the electrification of its truck fleet, Karin Rådström, CEO of Mercedes-Benz Trucks, speaking at the launch of its heavy duty eActros 600 tractor unit announced that series production in Wörth, Germany was slated for Q4, 2024.

The partners plan to initially invest a combined USD2.64bn to build a facility with a production capacity of 21 gigawatt hours (GWh) of batteries per year for commercial and industrial vehicle applications.

The company has announced a lineup of no fewer than eight buses and coaches from Mercedes-Benz and Setra, including two models making their debuts.

In order to drive up consumer interest, the company has been publishing many of its tests. The latest endeavour saw the eActros 600 complete a five-week test in temperatures of up to 44 degrees Celsius in Andalusia, Spain.

The JV aims to manufacture battery cells for commercial electric vehicles at a 21-gigawatt hour (GWh) factory that is anticipated to cost between USD 2-3 billion. The emphasis is on pioneering better battery chemistries that last longer, are safer, lower in cost and are more environmentally sustainable, preferably without the need for nickel and cobalt raw materials.

The company has produced and delivered over 28,000 units to date and, of these, around 85% are used for waste disposal applications, mostly across Europe.

The FC-powered coach is based on a customized BharatBenz coach chassis and powered by a fuel cell system designed and developed by Reliance Industries.

The BharatBenz Certified initiative will undertake the refurbishment of pre-owned BharatBenz vehicles with a 125-point quality check that will lead to a thorough technical check, repair and restoration of the vehicles.

The Green Financing Framework will allow for the issuance of green bonds, helping the company fund green projects, such as the generation of green electricity at its factories. The company has pledged CO2 neutrality at all its production facilities by 2039.

Having spent his entire professional career at the company, Goetz (52) took over the position of CFO in July 2021 and was largely responsible for the successful spin-off of Daimler Truck Holding from what is now the Mercedes-Benz Group in December 2021.

The company recently installed more than 6,000 photovoltaic solar panels on the roof of the Mercedes-Benz plant in Wörth, Germany. The system generates 3,000 MWh of electricity a year.

The InnoLab battery laboratory is expected to be completed by August this year. The facility will produce lithium-ion battery cells and assemble batteries. The facility will produce batteries in-house for its range of electrically powered buses and trucks with the aim of reducing its reliance on external battery suppliers and limiting the impact of component supply shortages. Daimler aims to produce the first battery cells by the end of 2023 and the first prototype battery system by 2024.