German retailer Edeka has commenced testing Mercedes-Benz’ all-electric eActros trucks in the Berlin city area, with a view to rolling these vehicles out across its fleet.
At the launch of the partnership in the German capital last week, Rita Schwarzelühr-Sutter, Parliamentary State Secretary at the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, emphasised the significance of the project.
Edeka’s objective is to operate a heavy-duty production truck in its fleet from 2021 onwards that will enable emission-free and quiet driving in cities. Testing of the eActros truck will last around two years.
Alternative Transports
The development and testing of alternative distribution methods such as these is being funded in various parts by the Federal Environment Ministry (BMU) and the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi) as part of the ‘Concept ELV²’ project.
"As a driver of innovation in trade, dealing with future technologies plays a major role for Edeka,” says Rolf Lange, head of corporate communications at EDEKA's Hamburg headquarters.
"We are already committed to reducing emissions in many areas - especially in logistics. We look forward to gaining valuable experience with this practical test in Berlin."
Prior to each journey, each vehicle is charged at a warehouse, so that the total range of up to 200 km is optimally utilised with one battery charge.
With around 3,500 vehicles, Edeka has one of the largest truck fleets in the German retail trade.
© 2018 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Chiara Di Filippo. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
