An investment of EUR 75 million is being made as the first step.Â
The Volvo Group, which focuses on sustainable transportation and infrastructure solutions is now moving toward electric trucks. It is already building heavy-duty electric trucks at its assembly plant in Gothenburg, Sweden.
Founded in 1927, this company aims to by 2030, that 35% of the vehicles sold worldwide would be electric. It has been announced that in 2025, the plant in Ghent, Belgium will start to produce battery modules. This investment decision is remarkable as the company shapes its future value chain for battery systems. The battery module manufacturing line in Ghent will be able to use battery cells both from partners and from the planned battery cell plant in Sweden.
Jens Holtinger, Executive Vice President of Group Trucks Operations, said, “We have started the investment process to establish battery module manufacturing in Ghent. The building is expected to be 12,000 m2 and be located at the Volvo Group manufacturing site. The new high-tech module factory will consist of an almost fully automated process with robots. This means that employees with the necessary competencies will be recruited, both externally and by building on our internal competencies. The investment frame for this first step of module manufacturing is Euro 75 million. “
Production of battery-electric heavy-duty trucks can also be expected by the second half of 2023. The battery packs needed to power these electric trucks are to be built in the Ghent plant.
