Volvo will supply 150 double deck and 20 single deck buses based on its ‘BZL Electric’ chassis to Stagecoach, who will put them on the roads of Manchester from Summer 2024.

The MAN truck, which will reach its first customers next year, was picked from a roster of approximately 20,000 products, submitted from 60 countries to 51 competition categories.

The demonstration vehicle achieved 16 miles per gallon fuel efficiency and a 170% improvement in freight efficiency over the 2009 ‘SuperTruck I’ vehicle.

The company said trucks built on these two platforms will give it a presence in around 80% of the country’s heavy-duty truck sub-segments.

The range, called ‘Luminus’, is based on the BZL Electric chassis and is available in lengths varying between 9.7 and 13 metres.

The Driveaway programme has added three new Iveco Daily 3.5 tonne options, powered by Iveco’s 136HP diesel engine, paired with a manual transmission.

The first driver-supervised road tests are taking place in Israel with an ‘eCentro’ midibus supplied by Otokar.

At ACT Expo in May, T&BB spoke to Dr Selda Gunsel – President of Shell Global Solutions and VP Fuels and Lubricants and Technology – who likened the 'Starship 3.0' to "a scientific paper on wheels", bringing together the best fuel-saving technologies available today.

The decision to bring the launch forward was motivated by increased demand and rapidly growing interest among Scandinavian operators, according to Volta Trucks.

Olectra Greentech has a strategic tie-up with BYD Auto Industry of Shenzhen, China.

Since October, some 100 LNG FPT-powered trucks have been sold.

The two five-year contracts stipulate firm orders for six ‘Xcelsior Charge FC’ fuel cell electric buses and twenty ‘Xcelsior Hybrid’ buses, and provide further options for up to 320 buses, half of which would be fuel cell electric and half of them hybrid electric.