“Customer interest in natural gas as a heavy-duty truck fuel will only continue to grow,” said Göran Nyberg, president of Volvo Trucks North American Sales & Marketing. “We plan to introduce our own Volvo LNG-fuelled engine in 2014, and this agreement is part of our effort to collaborate with various stakeholders to ensure that the market is supported with the necessary infrastructure.”
The agreement with Shell is global and non-exclusive, and will include collaboration on issues such as fuel specification and emissions performance, as well as general sharing of knowledge and experience with all aspects of this burgeoning market.
Volvo Trucks announced the development of its proprietary 13-liter LNG engine for North America in May. The engine’s advanced high pressure diesel ignition technology will provide significant fuel efficiency gains compared with spark-ignited natural gas engines, making it a viable solution for long-haul trucking applications. The company’s proprietary Volvo I-Shift automated manual transmission also will be available for customers to specify.
The company currently offers a natural gas-powered option for the Volvo VNM daycab, and will offer a natural gas-powered version of the Volvo VNL daycab beginning in 2013. Both models utilize spark-ignited engines.
The Volvo D13-LNG compression-ignition engine will utilize liquefied natural gas (LNG) to deliver increased range and significant fuel efficiency improvements compared with other natural gas-powered offerings.
Volvo Trucks North America’s operations and products are guided by the company’s three core values: Quality, Safety and Environmental Care. The Volvo VNM, VNL, VNX, VHD and VAH trucks are assembled in the United States at the New River Valley Plant in Dublin, Virginia, while Volvo engines for North America are assembled in Hagerstown, Maryland. Both plants are certified to ISO14001 environmental and ISO9001 quality standards.
The Volvo Group is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of trucks, buses, construction equipment and marine and industrial engines. The Group also provides complete solutions for financing and service. The Volvo Group, which employs about 115,000 people, has production facilities in 19 countries and sells its products in more than 190 markets. In 2012, the Volvo Group’s sales amounted to $45 billion. The Volvo Group is a publicly-held company headquartered in Gothenburg, Sweden. Volvo shares are listed on OMX Nordic Exchange Stockholm and are traded OTC in the U.S. For more information, please visit www.volvogroup.com or www.volvogroup.mobi if you are using your mobile phone.
March 27, 2013