Deutsche Post subsidiary StreetScooter GmbH and Ford-Werke GmbH are entering a partnership for the manufacturing of battery-electric delivery vehicles.
Deutsche Post says it has already left its mark in the smaller van segment by designing and producing the emission-free StreetScooter; now, both partners are working on a larger vehicle type.
As reported, the chassis of the delivery vehicles will be based on the Ford Transit. It will be equipped with a battery-electric drivetrain and fitted with a special body construction based on Deutsche Post and DHL Paket specifications.
The start of production is scheduled for this July, the companies assert. Before the end of 2018, at least 2,500 vehicles will support the urban delivery traffic of Deutsche Post DHL Group. With this volume, the joint project will become one of the largest manufacturers of battery-electric medium-duty delivery vehicles in Europe.
Both Deutsche Post DHL Group and Ford share the same objective of building future mobility by reducing emissions and creating new traffic solutions. This partnership is an important and tangible step towards achieving these goals.
“I consider this partnership another important boost for electro-mobility in Germany,” says Jürgen Gerdes, member of the executive board of the Deutsche Post AG. “This step emphasizes that Deutsche Post is an innovation leader. It will relieve the inner cities and increase the people’s quality of life. We will continue working on completely carbon-neutral, CO2-neutral logistics.”
In addition to the new assembly line, the existing manufacturing of the StreetScooter models will be significantly expanded. StreetScooter GmbH is planning to manufacture 20,000 units per year of its small electrical delivery van in different versions in Aachen and another site in North Rhine-Westphalia.
Today, there are already 2,500 StreetScooters in use for Deutsche Post throughout Germany. According to the company, more prospective buyers are signaling interest or have already received StreetScooters in order to convert their fleets to zero-emission operation.