DHL Taps Ford For EV delivery Vans, BMW Thinks Li-On Batteries Have “Peaked”
DHL wants to get 60% of its fleet battery powered by 2030 with help from Ford, and solid-state batteries are on BMW’s radar.
Stop and go, short runs, lots of idle time, and quick turnarounds. Delivery vans could be one of the biggest areas where EV tech can really shine. DHL believes so, and has handed over a wad of cash to Ford in exchange for 2,000 E-Transit delivery vans. It’s small in comparison to what Amazon has done with Rivian, but DHL’s infrastructure is just as big, and EV’s will be a big part of it.
Engadget reports that of its fleet vehicles, DHL wants 60% of them to be electric by 2030. Some of them are already on the road, too, with E-Transit vans making “express deliveries” in Europe and North America. And that specific use will be where these vans work best. But this deal comes with some sweetness, too. DHL and Ford plan to create a charging solutions, too. What those solutions are is yet to be seen. Perhaps a venture like BP Pulse and Hertz?
BMW’s head of energy, performance, and lifetime for next generation batteries eyes new tech to solve current hiccups
There’s no doubt that when it comes to energy storage, lithium-ion batteries have the upper hand. Simon Erhard is BMW’s top battery guy. And he has said “From an energy density point of view, I would say that we’re facing the optimum lithium-ion cell chemistry in an industrialized application.” In other words, this is about as good as it gets. But according to InsideEVs, he sees a bright future in a new battery tech. Solid State batteries.
This technological leap will be a compound one for a number of reasons. Solid state batteries have a higher energy density, and lower weight. They can also charge faster, have greater longevity and are safer than their lithium-ion counterparts. So what’s the hold up? Well, manufacturers were primarily focuses on getting the most out of the proven Li-On batteries first. But it is now evident that the next generation of batteries has to come from a whole new build philosophy.