Daimler India Commercial Vehicles (DICV), the wholly-owned subsidiary of Daimler Truck has announced its foray into India’s light-duty truck segment with the all electric eCanter.

The company is gearing up to launch the third-generation eCanter in the market within the next 6 to 12 months.

“Initially, these trucks will be imported from Japan,” DICV MD & CEO Satyakam Arya told reporters. “Later it will be assembled at the Oragadam plant in Chennai and sold under the BharatBenz name. We will not shy away from localising it if the volume makes sense,” he added.

Currently, DICV is conducting advanced trials with two to three trucks. It will be followed by customer trials, he said, without divulging details about the production plans and tonnage.

The battery-electric platform originated in Japan where the series production of the first-generation eCanter started in 2017. The all-new, next-generation eCanter had its world premiere in Japan and Europe in the second half of 2022.

Since the launch of the first generation in 2017, the eCanter has sold in hundreds in Europe, Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong. Now in its third generation, eCanter will have a significant presence in major markets around the world with a 100 variants.

Asserting that it was the first step in DICV’s long-term strategy to decarbonise its entire product portfolio, he said that in reality both diesel internal combustion engine (ICE) and CO₂-neutral propulsion technologies would continue to co-exist in the Indian market for the foreseeable future.

“LNG, if used at all, will be an interim, tactical solution for long haul transportation. We will primarily commit to battery-electric and hydrogen-based propulsion technologies across our future product portfolio, in a phased manner,” said Arya.

DICV has already developed a BharatBenz hydrogen fuel cell concept coach in alliance with a large Indian conglomerate. In the future, DICV will introduce trucks across different utility segments that will serve long haul, mining, construction, POL, dumper, RMC and so forth for various freight and terrain requirements.

By foraying into the CO₂-neutral propulsion technologies, DICV aims at contributing to India’s future as it progresses towards becoming one of the world’s top five commercial vehicle markets, the company said in a statement.

Daimler India Commercial Vehicles (DICV)

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