Freight innovator Tevva secures multi-million pound funding to develop long-range electric trucks

Electric truck manufacturer, Tevva, has announced it has received £4.2 million in funding to help finance the further development of its next generation, zero-emission, long-range medium-duty trucks (7.5-19 tonnes GVW). The funds represent the majority share of a £5.7 million total grant from the UK’s Advanced Propulsion Centre (APC).

The grant will be utilised to advance the SANGREAL Project, a £12.2 million collaboration between Tevva and Advanced Electric Machines (AEM), an internationally recognised designer and manufacturer whose vision is to build the most sustainable motors in the world.

As the electrification of the medium to heavy-duty truck market has largely been overlooked, Tevva and AEM will build upon their combined experience in commercial vehicle electrification to accelerate the development of Tevva’s fuel cell range extended medium- to heavy-duty commercial electric vehicles for the 7.5-19-tonne ‘back to base’ logistics market.

The project involves the design and development of an innovative electric transaxle and intelligent vehicle propulsion control system with onboard telematics which is designed to optimise the use of the H2 Fuel Cell Range extender for operating range and reliability and enable predictive and preventative servicing.

SANGREAL will create and safeguard vital UK-based research and manufacturing jobs, delivering cost and environmental benefits to the industry as well as to social stakeholders and the public. It will ensure that the UK remains at the forefront of the global fight against climate change, as the UK continues its pledge to ‘Build Back Better’, cementing its position as a world leader in the development of sustainable, low carbon automotive technologies.

“We are developing zero-emission solutions for higher weight class ‘return to base’ logistics vehicles that offer true cost of ownership benefit, compared to existing diesel offerings, with extended range – which is truly revolutionary for our industry,” commented Ken Scott, Chief Engineer at Tevva. “This funding will help make this a reality in the near-future.”

“The automotive industry is at a pivotal point,” added Jon Beasley, Business Development and Programmes Director at the Advanced Propulsion Centre. “Great ideas will not move the dial on decarbonisation unless they are on the road and taking the place of more polluting technology.

“The future movement of people and goods needs to be efficient and green. There has been real progress in the decarbonisation of cars to meet the UK Government’s plans to phase-out sales of new petrol and diesel cars and vans from 2030.  However, the pathways for Medium and Heavy duty and long-range transport are less clear.

“Further innovation and technology development is needed to decarbonise our buses, HDVs and off-highway vehicles and this is why we are delighted to be supporting Tevva and Advanced Electric Machines to deliver ground-breaking projects such SANGREAL.”