Volta Trucks has confirmed CPC Group, Europe’s largest composite manufacturing company, to develop and supply the sustainable and recyclable composite exterior body panels for the Volta Zero, the company’s purpose-built full-electric 16-tonne commercial vehicle designed specifically for inner city logistics.
When the Volta Zero was launched in September 2020, it was the first commercial vehicle to use sustainably-sourced flax and biodegradable resin composite panels. The fully natural, lightweight, high-performance fibre material is almost CO2 neutral over its lifecycle, and matches the stiffness and weight of carbon fibre but uses 75% less CO2 to produce.
CPC Group has over 10 year’s composites experience and has grown to become Europe’s largest composites manufacturer, employing over 1,000 experts, with investments of over €300 million, and aims to transform composite vehicle production from niche into volume manufacturing. CPC Group shares clear synergies with Volta Trucks in terms of its technological and commercial ambitions, making it a natural partner.
Volta Trucks will work with CPC Group to develop and industrialise these new and innovative, sustainable and recyclable composite materials to the significant volumes needed to deliver on the company’s long-term sales ambitions. Full-scale production of customer-specification vehicles will commence at the end of 2022 using state-of-the-art composite materials throughout the body & trim of the vehicle. Production will start with the first iteration of composite, with a series of future developments in sustainable composite materials forming part of the company’s long-term road map that’s being developed with its key supply chain and material development partners.