The battery electric urban truck range, originally launched in 2021, will now be fitted with an e-adapted chassis, new auxiliary systems, and batteries utilising Northvolt’s sustainably produced cells.
This gives customers greater flexibility when choosing a Scania designed for urban areas, such as distribution, refuse collection or construction.
The new electric machine sees the electric motor and gearbox combined into one unit called the EM C1-4. This single magnet motor is paired to a four-speed gearbox. It’s available in five different power outputs: 270, 300, 330, 360 and 400kW.
Now all Scania battery electric vehicle (BEV) trucks will be fitted using cells from Swedish manufacturer Northvolt, with each battery pack assembled at Scania’s new battery assembly facility in Södertälje.
Earlier this year, a joint validation test between Northvolt and Scania proved that lithium-ion cells could retain their capacity to power trucks for 1.5 million kilometres – equivalent to a truck's whole lifetime.
According to Scania, one of the main strengths of the batteries is their charging characteristics. Unlike other battery packs, Scania’s batteries can be charged repeatedly up to 100% of their state of charge (SOC) window without any impact on their lifespan. This is thanks to a straight charging curve, which means that they charge with the same speed when almost full as when they are to empty.
Scania has accomplished this by managing the temperatures of the batteries. Together with Northvolt, the company has adapted the battery technology for heavy vehicles with a high battery capacity versus the current at which a battery is charged and discharged.
Fredrik Allard, senior vice president at Scania, said: “We believe that charging will be less problematic when people learn more about how batteries work. When we analyse operational patterns, it’s evident that the vast majority have the range they need.
“The fact that some customers remain cautious and limit themselves to ordering a couple of trucks for their fleets is fully understandable since they want to gain experience first. But with our growing portfolio and an expanding infrastructure, Scania’s 2030 target of 50% of all trucks sold in Europe will be battery electric is within reach.”
Scania Charging Access is now open for business, offering BEV customers access to a European-wide charging network in 12 countries.
Customers will only receive one consolidated invoice from Scania for their charging regardless of who is operating the charge points in the network.
Magnus Höglund, head of charging solutions at Scania, said: “We are pioneering a consolidated service for heavy vehicles in Europe.
“It is primarily designed for en-route charging. Our mission is to enable and simplify electrification by taking out everything from range anxiety to administrative grievances from the equation and offering truck-ready charge points.
“We assess and rank all existing charge points manually, both the ones for heavy vehicles and those for passenger cars. This helps us identify the ones that are beneficial for our customers until there is a significant number and an extensive network dedicated solely to heavy vehicles.”