Electra working on hydrogen fuel cell

Blackburn-based electric truck maker Electra showed a range of its battery electric vehicles between 12 tonnes and 27 tonnes GVW at the show, and MD Ben Smith told MT the company was working on a hydrogen fuel cell for higher weight trucks.

A 12.5-tonner was fitted with a food waste tipping body, which created a lot of interest among municipal operators wondering how to comply with the government’s requirement to separate food from other waste streams.

“We have delivered seven to Basildon Council,” Smith said. “This is something nearly every council that has been on our stand has been desperate to see.”

Electra can build its electric driveline onto a variety of truck chassis but mostly uses Iveco gliders it buys in without engine or gearbox. It then fits the 250kW direct-drive motor battery packs to the customer’s specification and an active battery cooling system to keep the batteries within a specified on trial with a large concrete manufacturing company.

The truck’s 350kW LFP batteries power a permanent magnet synchronous motor, which delivers 250kW (360kW peak) of continuous power, giving the truck a range of between 120 and 180 miles. temperature range, thereby improving their performance and life. This also enables fast charging using a 150kW DC supply, a charge rate that can overheat batteries without a cooling system. The 700V batteries are made by Chinese manufacturer CATL.

The batteries are mounted directly behind the cab, which, according to Eichele, is the ideal location for mixer applications.

In addition to improving ground clearance, he said, the set-up makes it difficult to overload the rear axles, meaning the truck can potentially carry a higher payload than some rivals. The example on show featured a 9cu m Hardox mixer drum.

Eichele confirmed that the chassis would also be made available for other applications, some of which will mean repositioning the batteries.

“Our USP is that the same technology is fitted to every truck you see [on our stand],” said Smith. “It may have bigger motors or batteries but we have designed all the power electronics ourselves. You can get into them and change one in 15 minutes.”