Gothenburg, Sweden / Munich, Germany / Stuttgart, Germany – Today, the Volvo Group, Daimler Truck, and the TRATON GROUP completed the final step in forming their joint venture for charging infrastructure in Europe. The new joint venture, with Anja van Niersen as appointed CEO, is expected to have a significant role in supporting the European Union’s Green Deal for carbon-neutral freight transportation by 2050.
The joint venture (JV) plans to install and operate at least 1,700 high-performance green energy charge points on, and close to, highways as well as at logistics hubs across Europe. This is a commitment of EUR500 million total investment, which is assumed to be by far the largest charging infrastructure investment in the European heavy-duty truck industry to date.
The JV intends to take a leading role as a charge point operator (CPO) in the value chain by installing and managing charging stations for heavy-duty trucks and coaches. It will be a self-standing legal entity, operating under its own corporate identity and based in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Anja van Niersen, who will be taking the helm of the new company, will bring with her a wealth of experience from the energy and charging industry sector, most recently serving as CEO and later as Chairman of the Board of a major European electric vehicle charging network provider.
The JV’s customer-driven approach will provide reliable and accessible high-performance charging stations for all battery-electric heavy-duty vehicle fleet operators. This is a call to action for other industry players, as well as governments and policymakers, to work together for a rapid expansion of the necessary charging network. The charging network initiated by the three parties will be open and accessible to all heavy commercial vehicles in Europe, regardless of brand.
The JV team is committed to providing reliable and convenient public charging for heavy-duty vehicles. As the demand for battery electric trucks and coaches is expected to grow rapidly in the coming years, the team will work collaboratively across industries to design and build charging solutions that match the needs of transport companies and drivers.
More information, including the reveal of the brand name, will be available during 2022.
Tags: Volvo, Daimler, TRATON
