Daimler Truck, Volvo Group launch joint fuel-cell company

Daimler Truck AG and Volvo Group have completed the transaction of the joint fuel-cell project and have formed a new company entitled cellcentric with a combined goal to step towards climate-neutral and sustainable transportation by 2050.

The joint venture will develop, produce, and commercialize fuel-cell systems for use in heavy-duty trucks as the primary focus, as well as other applications. A key goal of Daimler Truck AG and the Volvo Group is to start with fuel-cell field tests with heavy-duty customers in about three years, and to commence series production during the second half of this decade.

In November 2020, the Volvo Group and Daimler Truck AG signed a binding agreement for the joint venture. A preliminary non-binding agreement was already signed in April the same year.

“In the future, the world will be powered by a combination of battery-electric and fuel-cell electric vehicles, along with other renewable fuels to some extent,” said Martin Lundstedt, president and CEO of the Volvo Group. “The formation of our fuel-cell joint venture is an important step in shaping a world we want to live in.”

Volvo Group has acquired 50% of the partnership interests in the existing Daimler Truck Fuel Cell GmbH & Co. KG for approximately EUR 0.6 billion on a cash and debt-free basis, and both companies have agreed to rename the company cellcentric GmbH & Co. KG.

The Volvo Group and Daimler Truck AG own equal interests in cellcentric but will continue to be competitors in all other areas such as vehicle technology and fuel-cell integration in trucks.