British EV developer Arrival has announced its first micro-factory in the USA. It is under construction in York County in the state of South Carolina and scheduled to produce electric buses from the fourth quarter of 2021. The talk is of 1,000 battery buses per year.

The Swedish startup Einride has introduced the next generation of its autonomous electric truck T-Pod, making it commercially available worldwide for the first time. The company is relying on a subscription model for this. Initial customers include Lidl Sweden, Oatly, Bridgestone and Northvolt.

The Total Group, together with other investors, has taken a stake in Hyzon Motors, a US developer of fuel cell commercial vehicles. Nothing was announced regarding the actual investment sum.

Volkswagen subsidiary Scania made a solar cell clad trailer to power a plug-in hybrid truck and is preparing testing in Sweden. In Germany, Fraunhofer LBF was looking at semi-trucks as well and developed a lightweight high-voltage battery system for heavy-duty EVs.

Austria’s Rosenbauer presents the first all-electric fire engine based on a series chassis as the development builds on Volvo’s FL Electric also known from city logistics. The new truck allows flexible use, says Rosenbauer, not “only” firefighting.

Amazon presents the first tailor-made delivery van the company has developed together with Rivian. The all-electric transporter builds the base of an order that is easily not just the largest in Rivian’s young history but among the biggest in the world.

Hyundai has handed over the first seven units of its fuel cell truck XCIENT to customers in Switzerland. Hyundai plans to deliver a total of 50 such trucks to the Alpine nation this year. By 2025 a total of 1,600 of the H2 trucks will be allocated to the Swiss market.

In a virtual press event, ZF presented the company’s general outlook and provided details on its planned electrification activities in the commercial vehicle sector.

Siemens Energy and Siemens Mobility have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to offer hydrogen systems for trains and rail transport jointly. A timetable for development and the pilot projects has yet to be revealed.

In the UK, Peugeot has opened the order books for the e-Traveller all-electric passenger van. The e-Traveller should arrive in British showrooms in 2021. Customers can reserve a vehicle with a single, fully-refundable deposit of £250.

Alstom’s hydrogen train, the Coradia iLint, has passed as entirely operational in the Netherlands.

The strategic e-mobility and manufacturing partnership between General Motors and Nikola still awaits finalisation. The deal for electric trucks was supposed to be signed and sealed tomorrow, but according to GM, this is not yet the case.

German automotive supplier Mahle and the Canadian fuel cell manufacturer Ballard Power Systems have agreed to jointly develop and mass-produce fuel cell systems for commercial vehicles of various weight classes.

Throughout California, communities can now purchase battery-electric shuttle buses and vans from Lightning Systems on a new cooperative purchasing contract through the California Association for Coordinated Transportation.

The Mercedes eCitaro G articulated bus has celebrated its world premiere. The electric bus is now also optionally available with solid-state batteries that can provide a range of up to 220 kilometres. Mercedes has also revealed more on the series production of the eActros.

MAN Truck & Bus is preparing its European workshops for handling electric vehicles. The manufacturer is planning to equip a total of 110 service branches with the corresponding skills and tools by the end of 2020. A further 60 workshops are to follow by the end of 2021.

Renault Trucks is now offering various financing options their electric trucks. Renault Trucks Financial Services, the company’s leasing subsidiary, is providing the offers.

Trevor Milton, founder and Chairman of the Board of Nikola Motors, has resigned with immediate effect. Nikola has recently faced allegations of fraud.

Opel, known as Vauxhall in the UK, will electrify all light commercial vehicles by 2021. Enough for us to take a look at the all-electric van Vivaro-e and its passenger car variant, the Zafira-e. Our editor had a short test drive with both vehicles in Germany.

Hyundai has announced plans to sell hydrogen fuel cell-powered trucks in the United States by 2022. The Korean company has confirmed its focus on H2 fuel cell for commercial vehicles, aiming to increase global FCEV sales yearly to 500,000 units in 2030.

Daimler Trucks has just presented its technology strategy for the electrification of its vehicles ranging from urban distribution vehicles right up to international long-distance transport. The presentation event in Berlin focused on fuel cell technology for trucks in the long-distance transport segment.

The US manufacturer Proterra presented its latest electric bus model, the ZX5. The electric bus is being offered in two length variants of 35 feet (10.7 metres) and 40 feet (12.2 metres) with 29 and 40 seats respectively.

Scania has announced the official market launch of its all-battery electric truck and plug-in hybrid truck. With these two models, the VW subsidiary brand initially intends to focus primarily on urban applications.

DB Cargo has signed a framework agreement with Siemens Mobility for the delivery of up to 400 hybrid locomotives. Initially, the DB 100 freight railroad will order class 248 locomotives.

Truck manufacturer Kenworth will start selling the Kenworth K270E battery-electric truck model and its bigger brother, the K370E, in the USA and Canada. The drivetrain for the BEV trucks is supplied by Dana. The first deliveries of the trucks should be made before the end of the year.

The US American bus maker Blue Bird says their electric school buses sell so well, they will increase production capacity to 1,000 units a year. Also in Russia, Kamaz announced plans to build twice as many e-buses next year.

In Germany, Freudenberg Sealing Technologies has launched the development of a fuel cell system for trucks in the 40-ton weight class. The company is cooperating with commercial vehicle conversion company Quantron.

Citroën continues to electrify their commercial vehicles and has announced the launch of the ë-Jumper this year. Following the smaller ë-Jumpy (and its passenger van counterpart, the ë-Spacetourer), the large van will now be available as an electric version.

Electrically-powered commercial vehicles: Opel will also offer an electric version of its Movano van in 2021. Next year, the Opel Combo Cargo will also be available as an electric version. Meanwhile, the new Opel Vivaro-e, which can already be ordered, will be delivered from October.

Dutch truck manufacturer DAF Trucks has doubled the range of its all-electric CF Electric truck to over 200 kilometres. Since the vehicle is significantly lighter with the new battery generation, the payload has also increased.