Mercedes introduced right now that it has signed letters of intent with Rhenus, a European logistics firm, and Amazon, the American e-commerce firm, to check the eActros LongHaul electrical truck in real-world situations beginning as early as 2023.

“As with all our e-trucks, we’ll depend on early sensible assessments with prospects for our eActros LongHaul,” Michael Scheib, Head of Product Administration, Mercedes-Benz Vans. “By doing so, our engineers will have the ability to incorporate invaluable information gained from real-world operations—particularly with regard to high-performance charging—immediately into the event of the series-production car. We’re very happy with the deliberate partnerships with Amazon and Rhenus.”

With a variety of round 311 miles (500 km) the eActros LongHaul truck might be examined in a number of purposes by Rhenus. The testing will embrace towing transport containers and tarpaulin trailers to determine the suitability of the truck to day by day operations.

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Mercedes says that it’s already subjecting the truck to intensive testing and that it’ll start driving the truck on public roads this yr. A “idea prototype,” in the meantime, might be highlighted on the IAA Transportation present in Hanover this month, as a part of the automaker’s show.

Rhenus and Amazon, in the meantime, can even be testing the vehicles, in addition to high-performance chargers that serve the wants of the big vehicles. Termed “megawatt charging,” The businesses plan to arrange a check mission known as “Excessive-performance charging for long-haul trucking,” which it abbreviates as HoLa.

As a part of the mission, charging stations will first be put in at a variety of areas alongside the A2 freeway, between Berlin and the North Rhine-Westphalia. Quite a few them might be geared up with megawatt chargers that may get the truck from 20 to 80 p.c cost in simply half-hour, lower than the 45 minute break that truck drivers are entitled to in Europe.

“If we need to use considerably greater numbers of e-trucks nationwide in Germany sooner or later and, above all, over longer distances, we must use each charging different,” stated Sascha Hähnke, the managing director of Rhenus Transport. “After all, this contains high-performance charging on the highway and, ideally, through the statutory relaxation intervals. That is the one solution to obtain optimum truck capability utilization.”

By working collectively, the businesses hope to determine a standardized charging infrastructure for vehicles. Suggestions from drivers, in the meantime, might be collected frequently within the type of interviews and questionnaires with a view to assist additional develop the truck.