Logistics service provider Simon Loos has ordered 75 eActros 600 electric trucks from Mercedes-Benz Trucks.
The company from the Netherlands is thus expanding its electric fleet, which consists mainly of Mercedes-Benz trucks, to a total of 135. The contract, signed at the IAA Transportation in Hanover, is one of the largest orders for electric trucks from Mercedes-Benz Trucks to date.
This summer, Simon Loos was the first company outside of Germany to begin practical trials of the eActros 600, for which three professional drivers were specially trained by Mercedes-Benz Trucks test engineers. The near-series prototype of the eActros 600 drove 25,000 kilometres within a few months between suppliers and the regional and national distribution centres of Albert Heijn, the largest supermarket chain in the Netherlands, and was able to prove its practical suitability in terms of driving comfort, safety, energy consumption and driving distance.
Tjeerd Tromp, Head of Sales at Daimler Truck Nederland, said:There has been a real partnership between the two companies for decades. By carrying out practical tests, Simon Loos has made an important contribution to optimising the eActros 600, which will soon go into series production. It is therefore great that this cooperation has been confirmed by an order of this magnitude. This not only shows the confidence in our product, but also that electric trucks can already be fully utilised in daily operations.
Wim Roks, Fleet Manager at Simon Loos, called the eActros 600 a “real game changer”, because this electric truck can manage around twice the range to previous trucks used by the company – 500km. This means routes – and their distances – are no longer a planning constraint for them.
The first eActros 600 in the Simon Loos livery is due to hit the roads in the first quarter of 2025. The majority of the vehicles will be used to supply retail companies. The vehicles will be charged at the customer’s premises.
About the eActros 600
The eActros 600 for long-distance transport celebrated its world premiere at the end of 2023. The high battery capacity of over 600 kilowatt hours (three battery backs with 207kWh each) – hence the designation 600 – and a new, particularly efficient electric drive axle developed in-house enable the electric truck to have a range of 500 kilometres (under test conditions) without intermediate charging. This range is achieved under very realistic, practical conditions with a gross combination weight of 40 tonnes and can also be significantly exceeded depending on the driving style and route. The eActros 600 will be able to cover well over 1,000 kilometres per day. This is made possible through intermediate charging during the legally prescribed driver breaks – even without megawatt charging – provided the charging facilities are available. In addition to CCS charging with up to 400kW, the eActros 600 will later also enable megawatt charging (MCS).
The electric truck is set to set new standards in terms of profitability for fleet operators, which will enable it to replace the majority of diesel trucks in the important long-distance transport segment in the long term. The core of the Mercedes-Benz Trucks concept for battery-electric long-distance transport is to offer customers a comprehensive transport solution comprising vehicle technology, advice, charging infrastructure and services in addition to competitive vehicles with the new TruckCharge brand. Mercedes-Benz Trucks is celebrating the start of series production of the eActros 600 at the Mercedes-Benz plant in Wörth at the end of November this year. The first customer vehicles of the eActros 600 are to be manufactured and registered before the end of 2024. The eActros 600 was recently honoured as International Truck of the Year 2025 at the IAA Transportation in Hanover.
