Renault Trucks are to supply Tarmac with the UK’s first battery electric mixer truck, a 26-tonne Renault Trucks E-Tech D Wide.
Due to be delivered in Autumn 2022, the electric mixer will be put to work at Tarmac’s Washwood Heath site in Birmingham, supplying construction materials to customers across the West Midlands.
Tarmac’s ambitions are for their wipespread use across its urban operations and is working with Renault Trucks and Total Vehicle Solutions (TVS) to develop the next generation of mixers reducing noise and vibration, as well as improving air quality, when operating in urban areas and low and zero emissions zones.
Through the use of telematics, the design team has been able to match the normal delivery profile of a truck to the indicative range of 120km and the power draw from the mixer drum in transit and discharge, and its 265kWh battery will have the ability to fast charge within 1.5 to 2 hours.
It will also operate using clean energy taken from Tarmac’s own on-site electricity generation with wind, solar and hydro power sources.
John Anderson, logistics director at Tarmac, said: “This order marks the first practical step towards a whole fleet transition to electric mixers and demonstrates our commitment to lead by example as we continue to turn our net zero ambitions into actions.
“One of Tarmac’s key sustainability goals is to be at the forefront of implementing low CO2 transport and logistics solutions, and this shows us doing exactly that. We’re looking forward to serving our customers across the West Midlands with this fully electric truck in the autumn,” Anderson added.
The position of the batteries beneath the E-Tech D Wide lowers the centre of gravity, improving the stability of the mixer. The design of the vehicle has been developed following through Tarmac’s Supplier Innovation Challenge, which saw suppliers working to find solutions to accelerate the industry’s progress to reach net zero.
