VW's Traton, Toyota's Hino agree electric truck venture

[FRANKFURT AM MAIN] Volkswagen truck unit Traton and Toyota's commercial vehicles arm Hino Motors said Wednesday they would create a joint venture to develop electric trucks as manufacturers pivot to the growing e-vehicle market.

Traton and Hino will develop battery-electric and fuel-cell trucks, alongside components and common software and interfaces, the companies said in a joint statement.

Like the entire Volkswagen group, Traton has made electrification one of its strategic priorities, as it races to comply with European Union carbon emissions goals.

The Munich-based group, including its brands MAN and Scania, is targeting one billion euros in investments to 2025 in electric vehicles.

"This new joint venture with Hino is the next important step in electrification, pushing our mission further ahead," said Traton chief executive Matthias Gruendler.

The two companies first agreed to a partnership in 2018 and established a procurement joint venture in 2019.

The makeup of the new joint venture was not specified but both companies will "form a team of advanced specialists" and launch the project in Sodertalje, Sweden, where Scania has a factory, and later in Tokyo.

"I am delighted that we can follow our procurement joint venture and further embodying our synergy with Traton in e-mobility, helping to reduce global CO2 emissions and fighting global warming," Hino chief executive Yoshio Shimo said.

Traton and Hino have 83,000 and 35,000 employees respectively, and sold 242,000 and 190,000 vehicles worldwide in 2019.

Traton announced in mid-October an "agreement in principle" to acquire the US truck manufacturer Navistar for US$3.7 billion.

AFP