Volvo Construction Equipment held its latest Electric Demo Day event on May 5, 2023, at the Mills River, N.C., branch of Ascendum Machinery, just outside Asheville, where the manufacturer showcased its new L25 electric compact loader and ECR25 electric compact excavator to an audience of curious contractors and operators.

Volvo's Nick Tullo, head of new business development for the equipment maker, was on hand to answer questions about the latest electric models, which promise significant benefits for their users and the environment, such as zero exhaust emissions from use, significantly lower noise levels, reduced energy costs and premium warranty coverage.

The new products' benefits to the planet and its changing climate are paramount to Volvo, Tullo said.

"For now, the main point is that they produce zero emissions and are completely diesel free, fume free and silent," he said. "I would say it is definitely a change from what we are seeing in the industry. Volvo has launched five electric models in total, and we are the first manufacturer to come to market with these commercially available products. We now offer two compact loaders and three compact excavators."

Tullo added that the new Volvo electrics have been designed and built by their engineers to be familiar for owners of the diesel equivalent models, meaning the electric models' power, weight and breakout forces are all like diesel machines.

"That also means that the parts commonality on the electric models is also very close to the diesels too — about 80 percent alike," he said.

Volvo has partnered with Portable Electric, a Canadian maker of clean energy portable electric generators, to offer its Voltstack Mobile EV Charger trailers for boosting the compact excavators and loaders when they are on remote job sites.

"Voltstack has proven itself to be the best solution for keeping our machines charged and ready to work," said Tullo. "It's an 80 kWh zero emission energy storage unit on a trailer weighing about 8,800 lbs. You can bring it out to a remote site to charge our excavators four times off one trailer charge, and twice for the compact loaders. With a fully charged Voltstack mobile unit, a contractor can use it as the project's power bank while on site for a couple of days, and they can then tow it back to their shop and it'll charge in about 12 hours on a level 2, 240V 40A circuit — even faster at around 3.5 hours if they have access to a 120/208VAC 80A 5-wire camlock."

He added there are different charging options for the electric machines because they come standard with the common 120V 3-prong outlet or 240V 4-prong NEMA 14-50 plug configuration.

"Both plug types are so common that you'll find them in most commercial buildings or other portable power solutions," Tullo said. "For a true zero emission remote charging solution, this Voltstack trailer is a great way to go." CEG

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