Volvo Construction Equipment (Volvo CE) and its local dealer Volvo Maskin are celebrating an important milestone in Norway's long-term journey towards electrification and a more sustainable infrastructure.
This week, longstanding customers K Baugerød Anlegg and Veidekke took delivery of the first electric construction machines in the country - a Volvo ECR25 Electric compact excavator and a Volvo L25 Electric wheel loader.
K Baugerød Anlegg and Veidekke were among the first customers in the world to place an order for these new models during their global launch at the Bauma exhibition in Munich, Germany, in 2019. In signing the contracts, Volvo CE, K Baugerød Anlegg and Veidekke committed to building a sustainable future together.
K Baugerød Anlegg plans to deploy the Volvo ECR25 Electric for its work with cable and pipeline construction in the city of Oslo City, while Veidekke will first use the Volvo L25 Electric in a job for the Norwegian Public Roads Administration.
Quiet, emission-free operation
"Our clients request more environmentally friendly solutions, and we want to be in the forefront. The new quiet and emission-free excavator will also make an immediate difference to the quality of life to the operator and other staff on site," said Sara Iselin Nysveen Bakke, general manager at K Baugerød Anlegg.
Are Ellefsrud, machine manager at Veidekke added: "We are proud to be among the first construction companies in Norway to operate a Volvo electric machine and demonstrate to our customers and wider society that we take our role in caring for the environment and combatting climate change very seriously."
Replacing a combustion engine with 48-volt lithium ion batteries and electric motors, these machines offer the same high performance, but with zero emissions, low noise, less vibration and simpler maintenance requirements. The batteries store enough energy to power an eight-hour shift in typical applications, such as landscaping and utility work, and can be charged overnight via a regular household plug socket.
Collaboration for a fossil-free future
At a socially-distanced handover event to comply with local COVID-19 restrictions, David Kristianslund, sales director at Volvo Maskin, thanked K Baugerød Anlegg and Veidekke for their collaboration.
"We would like to thank K Baugerød Anlegg and Veidekke for the trust they have placed in us and are proud to work with them as the first owners of the Volvo ECR25 Electric and Volvo L25 Electric in Norway, pioneering a better and more sustainable future," he said.
Volvo CE President Melker Jernberg also sent a digital message to the leaders of K Baugerød Anlegg and Veidekke. "The support and commitment of forward-thinking and environmentally conscious customers, such as K Baugerød Anlegg and Veidekke is essential for the development of sustainable infrastructure solutions. By working closely together, we can all learn faster and accelerate the transition to a fossil-free future and help build the world we want to live in," he concluded.
