“It is three times more expensive to purchase. However, it is also really impractical in everyday operations.”

The heavy road transportation is one of the hardest to transition. Transport of big, heavy things across long distances often demand more than the batteries can handle, and with a still insufficient charging infrastructure including other technological limitations, it is a challenge to implement electrical trucks in practical day-to-day operations.

NorSea Denmark can now participate in this conversation after the first month, where the logistics department have attempted to solve the puzzle of trucks and transportation tasks – notably after the puzzle pieces now include a Mercedes eActros distribution truck, one of the first fully electrical trucks on the Danish market:

“The electrical truck is challenged on range, on volume of goods, on type of goods, and on the charging infrastructure. This results in a lot of everyday hiccups,” as Anders Aalund Olsen, COO in NorSea Denmark, explains. 

Harvesting good experiences

NorSea Denmark’s electrical truck can take on a maximum of 300 kilometers in a day, and since this has to cover both to and from, there is a limit to how far it can go. Electrical trucks are yet to be approved for transportation of dangerous goods and additionally, they cannot carry as much weight.

“The electrical truck can handle approximately 5 percent of the tasks we typically have. So, the business model is initially non-existent. The truck is three times more expensive to buy. However, it is really impractical in everyday operations,” says Anders Aalund Olsen:

“But: even though it is troublesome, it is highly important. We want to actively contribute to pushing the green transition, and unless we engage ourselves herein, this is not possible.  This is the path we all need to take,” he emphasizes.

In his experience, sustainability is a priority for the customers. But the price is too.

“The customers are very interested in green solutions, and they want to join. But the green solutions must also be financially sustainable and need to be able to handle competition in pricing,” says Anders Aalund Olsen:

“Both we and the customers must learn to work with the heavy transportation on other terms. For us, it is also about harvesting great experiences that will benefit us later,” he says.