Experts expect electric trucks to surpass traditional diesel trucks in sales by 2030, with increased energy density in electric truck batteries allowing them to travel longer distances before needing to recharge.

In 2019, Mercedes began selling its electric truck, the Freightliner, in the United States. After five years, the company unveiled the electric truck Mercedes-Benz eActros 600, which is set to be released for sale in Europe and the world, during an international exhibition near Hamburg.

As with electric cars, electric trucks are still evolving, and their prices remain significantly higher than traditional trucks, with the electric truck costing about 2.5 times that of its diesel counterpart.

Karin Rödström, head of Mercedes-Benz Trucks, stated that the truck "Actros 600 represents a turning point in the road freight industry's path towards carbon neutrality, unlike any other truck bearing the three-pointed star of Mercedes... It features innovative technology that provides our customers with high energy efficiency, thus increasing their profitability. It also enhances the attractiveness of the transition to electric trucks for transport companies."

With the transport sector needing trucks that can carry 40 tons or more, manufacturers of electric trucks must consider dimensions that drivers of conventional vehicles can only marvel at. The eActros truck contains two electric motors connected to the rear axle through a 4-speed gearbox. The combined power of the motors reaches 600 kW/816 hp, focusing on torque rather than speed.

For any vehicle, a 100 kW battery is considered large, but this truck has 3 batteries, each with 207 kW, allowing it to travel up to 500 kilometers before needing to recharge. The eActros truck's load capacity with a standard trailer is about 22 tons.

Although this load is theoretically impressive, it is not enough to meet the demand for truck transport services, let alone the need to operate trucks around the clock to achieve profits for transport companies.

This means that the relatively long recharging time for the batteries currently represents a major disadvantage for electric trucks. However, Mercedes states that about 60% of long-distance truck journeys in Europe are shorter than the eActros's range of 500 kilometers.