Daimler's first electric truck 'eCanter' set for India debut in 6-12 months

The German firm aims for its new trucks and buses to be carbon-neutral in Europe, Japan, and the USA by 2039, and globally by 2050

Daimler India Commercial Vehicles (DICV) on Wednesday said that it will launch its first electric truck in India called ‘eCanter’ within the next six-12 months.

With eCanter, the German company will be entering the light-duty truck segment in India.

“The market launch of the all-electric eCanter in India demonstrates the company’s first step towards its larger vision to decarbonise its entire product portfolio in the long term,” DICV said in a statement.

Daimler sold 21,231 commercial vehicles (CVs) in India during the financial year 2023-24 (FY24), recording a 23.8 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) growth, according to Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA).

This was much higher than the growth observed by the overall CV industry in the country. Sales of CVs in India jumped 4.82 per cent to one million units.

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The German company is striving for its new trucks and buses to be carbon-neutral in Europe, Japan and the US by 2039, and globally by 2050.

Satyakam Arya, managing director (MD) and chief executive officer (CEO), DICV, said that diesel, internal combustion engine (ICE) and carbon-neutral propulsion technologies will continue to coexist in the Indian market in the near future.

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. They will serve long haul, mining, construction, petroleum, oil and lubricant (POL), dumper, ready-mixed concrete (RMC) and other segments, for various freight and terrain requirements,” it added.

India's CV market is dominated by three companies — Tata Motors, Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) and Ashok Leyland. The trio held 76.3 per cent share in this market during FY24.

Each major player in the CV market is taking its own set of steps to reduce carbon emissions.

Tata Motors has a partnership with Cummins to produce hydrogen-powered ICEs for its commercial vehicles. However, it has not yet revealed its timeline to launch hydrogen-powered trucks. In February, Hinduja Group flagship company Ashok Leyland commenced delivery of its intermediate and heavy duty electric trucks to customers. Mahindra & Mahindra is also reportedly planning to launch its first electric truck next year.

DICV said India is also a world-renowned base for research and development (R&D). And, it will continue to grow as a hub for product development in the future, as new technologies get introduced. 

“However, India needs conducive, robust policies and a market environment to compete with the world, going forward,” it added.