MAN delivers its first all-electric truck in Germany

A very special customer has been the lucky recipient of the first all-electric truck from the renowned German manufacturer MAN. The model delivered is the eTruck, and from now on its mission will be to transport batteries from the Dräxlmaier plant in Leipzig to the Porsche plant, also located in Leipzig, where the electric Macan is assembled.

This eTruck will be operated by the transport company Elflein. The journey from the Dräxlmaier plant to the Porsche plant is just five kilometres, so it will pose no challenge for MAN’s new electric truck, originally developed to cover much longer routes.

MAN’s eTruck is equipped with six battery packs totalling 534 kWh, of which 480 kWh are actually usable. It also features a 330 kW motor, which allows it to carry an average of 15.5 tonnes per trip. The range announced by the manufacturer is between 500 and 600 km, allowing it to cover both regional and long-distance routes.

Sales success seems assured

Following the delivery of this first eTruck unit, MAN hopes to place 200 more units in the hands of its customers before the end of the current year. Two of them will accompany the unit delivered now to supply components to the Porsche plant.

The delivery of this first eTruck unit represents an important step forward for the German truck manufacturer in its commitment to electric mobility. With more than 2,500 firm orders, MAN aims to become a significant player in the freight transport sector with its electric models. The company is already the sales leader with its electric buses, and now intends to repeat this success with its trucks using the same propulsion system.

In statements to the media, Jens Hartmann, the current Chief Operating Officer of MAN Energy Solutions, a MAN division specialising in energy solutions, pointed out that the eTruck delivered now, under the designation eTGX, is a completely different model from the eTGM we already knew, not only because of its greater tonnage but also because it offers a modular design. This system, he explained, makes it possible to configure trucks from 12 to 50 tonnes, with battery options ranging from two to seven packs in total, thus adapting to customers’ range and charging needs.