Coop, Switzerland’s second-largest grocery store chain, and Feldschlösschen, one of the country’s largest beer brewers, have launched a pilot of a locally-built 18-ton electric truck. Coop and Feldschlösschen will test the e-truck on delivery routes in the Zürich region through the end of 2013. If it proves satisfactory, the companies plan to put more into service. 

The new truck is a joint effort of the Swiss firms EFORCE ONE and Designwerk. It’s based on a German-made Iveco, and its electric drivetrain components were built by another Swiss company, BRUSA. It features two motors with total power of 300 kW and torque of 610 Nm, two inverters, two 3-phase 22 kW chargers and two 120 kWh LiFePO₄ battery packs (each one is five times the size of the pack in a LEAF). Range is estimated at up to 186 miles. 

“The emissions reduction of goods transport is an important part of Coop’s ‘CO₂-neutral by 2023’ vision,” said CEO Joos Sutter. “Operating electric trucks will allow Coop to reduce its CO₂ emissions by many tons, and also lessen noise pollution.” 

Swiss TV network SRF had some fun at the launch event, staging a race between the electric truck and a legacy diesel truck.

The announcer called the result of the race “surprising,” but it won’t be a surprise to regular Charged readers (the voiceover is in German, but the story isn’t hard to follow).

Image: EFORCE ONE
Source: Coop, EFORCE ONE, SRF