Today marks a historic moment for Scania as its battery assembly at the Swedish headquarters in Södertälje is inaugurated. The start of operations at the new plant enables serial production of heavy-duty premium electric vehicles.
“I am extremely proud of all colleagues who have put their hearts and minds into this. At Scania, we have made it our purpose to drive the shift towards a sustainable transport system. With the battery assembly in operations we have one of the key enablers in place to accelerate the shift to electrification,” says Christian Levin, President and CEO Scania and TRATON GROUP.
Top-performing cells to be assembled
In 2030, Scania aims for 50 percent sales of electric vehicles. Looking further, every transport can be electric. “The shift to electrified solutions is the biggest transformation in the history of transport, and 2023 is the year when it truly takes off. The proof points are being launched one by one and the 1,5 billion SEK investment in this new battery assembly is one of them,” Levin continues.
In April, Scania and Northvolt unveiled a jointly developed battery cell designed for heavy-duty transport with outstanding performance and a uniquely low carbon footprint. The cell is produced at the gigafactory Northvolt ETT in northern Sweden and will, as from 5 September, be assembled into packs at the new 18,000-square-meter plant in Södertälje, enabling the start of serial production of Scania’s premium electric trucks for regional transport.
Enabling large-scale production of electric vehicles
By locating the assembly plant adjacent to the chassis line in Södertälje, which was redesigned this summer for large-scale production of electric vehicles, the conditions for fast and efficient manufacturing flows are in place. The battery assembly will employ 550 Scania colleagues and is highly automated, from incoming goods throughout production to delivery.
“Despite a rapidly changing business landscape, our promise to always put our customers first remains. Being premium means that we deliver solutions that are both of the highest quality – and sustainable. The cell being assembled into modules and packs is a perfect example of this. It has the capacity to power trucks for 1,5 million kilometres – equivalent to the truck’s lifetime. It is a privilege to drive change together with all our partners and customers,” says Marcus Holm, Head of Production and Logistics at Scania.