Posten Norge Group has put the first all-electric 26-tonne truck into service, a MAN eTGM. The electric truck will be used to de-liver and pick up parcels at parcel centres in the centre of Oslo, replacing the diesel truck that was previously used. With the MAN eTGM, the Norwegian Post is starting the conversion of its fleet of heavy trucks to alternative drives.
«It is very important to us at Posten Norge that as many of our vehicles as possible are fossil-free. And we have already come a long way to achieve this with appropriate vehicles. The fact that we are now getting a 26-tonne truck that runs on electricity is a big step towards achieving this goal», Hans-Øyvind Ryen, Executive Vice President Operations Norway at Posten Norge Group, was delighted at the official handover of the vehicle in Oslo. A total of 26 per cent of the fleet already runs on renewable energies. The newcomer from Munich is about three times larger than the heaviest distribution vehicles in the Norwegian Post’s electric fleet to date.
For MAN Truck & Bus Norway, too, the first eTGM delivered is an important milestone on the road to the sustainable future of mobility, as Sales Manager Lars B. Sand emphasises: «Environmentally friendly solutions have a high priority at Posten Norge and we are very proud to be part of this investment. As a manufacturer, we are doing our part to successfully decarbonise transport. The handover of our first all-electric 26-tonne truck is a special day for MAN in Norway»
MAN eTGM — Source: MT&B
The MAN eTGM: fully electric in heavy distribution transport
The MAN eTGM has been produced in small series since November 2019 and meets all of the key demands placed on the inner-city goods transport services of the future: It is quiet and operates with zero local emissions. At the same time, the truck has sufficient payload to cope with typical transport tasks in medium and heavy distribution traffic. The MAN eTGM can be configured as a vehicle with a refrigerated body, a swap body or a beverage container body. The fully electric distribution vehicle has a total permissible weight of 26 tonnes and is powered by a 264 kW (360 hp) electric motor, which provides a maximum torque of 3.100 Nm. Auxiliary units such as power steering, air compressors and the air-conditioning system are electric, with the energy management system controlling them as required to ensure energy savings.
When coasting and braking, the kinetic energy of the vehicle is converted into electrical energy and returned to the battery storage. This can significantly increase the range. A display in the cockpit informs the driver about the batteries’ current energy level. The power for the truck is delivered by high-performance lithium-ion batteries from the Volkswagen Group. These are located beneath the cab above the front axle, where the diesel driveline is located in conventional vehicles. Other batteries can be found on the vehicle frame. Depending on the field of application and climatic and topographic conditions, the MAN eTGM boasts a range of up to 200 kilometres. The batteries can be charged using alternating current with a charging capacity of 22 or 44 kW, or with 150 kW of direct current in what is known as “high-power charging”.
To make the transition to e-mobility as easy as possible, MAN Truck & Bus offers its customers a bespoke, comprehensive and solution-oriented consultation service from MAN Transport Solutions when they are purchasing an eTGM. In addition, drivers of an MAN eTGM are offered a driver training course with MAN ProfiDrive, which has been put together with the specific aim of addressing the challenges of driving a fully electric vehicle.