Wednesday 29 September 2021

Ricardo gets government funding to advance electric truck technology

Ricardo gets government funding to advance electric truck technology

Ricardo has announced it has won two government-backed competitions to develop future electric trucks.

The environmental consultancy is partnering with the University of Bath for both projects, the first of which will involve testing power electronics in battery packs to see whether this would reduce the total cost of owning the trucks. It has stated if successful, the efficiency improvements could produce savings of up to £1,000 per vehicle – inspiring more people to adopt them.

For the second project, Ricardo is developing technologies for higher voltage electric trucks that would enable faster charging times and more efficiency.

Both projects will be delivered by Innovate UK and are funded by the Department for Transport and the Faraday Battery Challenge.

Currently, trucks make up 13.1% of all vehicles on UK roads but account for 35% of transport emissions. The government is looking to end the sale of non-zero-emission vehicles by 2040 and believes these new innovations are key to that coming to fruition.

Teri Hawksworth, President of Ricardo, said: “Heavy duty vehicle carbon regulations will require manufacturers to reduce their fleet average carbon emissions significantly. These targets will not be achieved just by improving current technology but will need new powertrain technologies.

“Ricardo is committed to supporting manufacturers and fleet operators by driving cost out of electrification, leveraging our world-renowned expertise in battery, electronics and motor innovation to help achieve net zero ambitions.”

Written by

Bruna Pinhoni

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