Volta Trucks has confirmed that the first Volta Zero vehicles will be manufactured in Steyr, Austria, by Steyr Automotive, formerly MAN Truck and Bus Austria.

Steyr Automotive was appointed based on its “extensive experience” of commercial vehicle manufacturing, existing manufacturing infrastructure and consequent speed to market.

Volta Trucks expects to start series production in late 2022, following customer trials of Pilot Fleet vehicles that will commence mid-next year.

Kjell Waloen, co-founder and chief technology officer of Volta Trucks, said: “The partnership with Steyr Automotive marks a significant milestone for Volta Trucks, and one of the important milestones ahead of us starting to build full electric trucks by the end of 2022.

“The team at Steyr Automotive has demonstrable capability to manufacture the Volta Zero with decades of previous premium truck-building experience. Building our trucks in Austria, in the heart of our European launch region, will accelerate our time to market and minimise the environmental footprint of our operations, supporting our sustainability ambitions – a key factor in our decision-making process.

“The partnership will now allow Volta Trucks to quickly ramp up our production as we look to meet the demands of our customers who need to replace their fleets with zero emission vehicles as soon as possible.”

The confirmation of the manufacturing partner forms an integral part of the Volta Trucks’ Road-to-Zero Emissions strategy, released in May 2021. The strategy details four Volta Zero models ranging from 7.5 to 19 tonnes, with more than 27,000 units built per year by 2025.

Volta Trucks plans to manufacture vehicles close to the markets in which they will be sold, reducing the environmental footprint of vehicle distribution. With London and Paris identified as the initial launch cities, and a Europe-first city-specific roll out strategy, the plant in Austria is situated close to the initial markets, supporting the accelerated roll-out of full-electric commercial vehicles to customers.

The Road-to-Zero Emissions strategy also confirmed the company’s planned market expansion across Europe followed by North American and Asian markets. Additional global manufacturing plants are also already under consideration.

Siegfried Wolf, chairman of the board of Steyr Automotive, added: “We are very pleased and excited that Volta Trucks selected Steyr Automotive for the manufacturing for the new electric Volta Zero. With the expertise and experience of our team in Steyr, we are looking forward to a long-lasting successful partnership with Volta Trucks.”