After trundling out electric heavy machinery at a test quarry in 2018, Volvo has now sold its first all-electric construction industry vehicle in France. The compact electric excavator has been delivered to contractor Eiffage, along with the group's FE Electric truck.
The FE Electric has been on sale since 2019, and was designed to tackle city distribution, light construction, utilities operations and refrigerated transport. The 27 tonner has two electric motors and a two-speed gearbox, a peak power output of 400 kW and 850 Nm (626.9 lb.ft) of torque. It can come with up to four battery packs, each with a capacity of 50 kWh. And the vehicle sold to Eiffage came with an electrically powered crane, and represents the first FE Electric in France.
It also came with the Volvo ECR25 Electric compact excavator from Volvo Construction Equipment – which says that it should match the performance of its diesel-powered sibling, but boasts lower noise and vibration levels.
It weighs in at 2,730 kg (6,018 lb), can dig down to 2.76 m (9 ft) and has a tear-out force of 17.8 kN. It features a 30-kW electric motor and 20-kWh battery pack, and can run for up to four hours (depending on how it's used). When moving around the construction site between digs, it can get up 4.5 km/h (2.8 mph). Sound pressure level around the vehicle is reported to be 84 dB, while it's reduced to 74 dB for the operator.
The FE Electric and ECR25 Electric will be put to work on the Grand Paris Express transport project, which aims to lay 200 km (120 mi) of new track and build 68 new stations on four new lines and extensions to existing lines, to eventually serve a projected two million daily passengers.
Source: Volvo CE
