Team-BHP - Volvo developing diesel plug-in hybrid electric vehicles in 2012 for EU

"Volvo currently has the world’s most efficient hybrid solution for buses and trucks. Volvo Buses has sold more than 250 hybrid buses, which are reducing fuel consumption by up to 35% and thus also reducing energy consumption and carbon-dioxide emissions by an equal amount.

“Reducing the total global energy consumption is the most important measure today and in the future,” says Volvo Buses CEO Håkan Karlsson. “The bus is already today clearly the most energy-efficient vehicle for public transport and our hybrid bus will accentuate its position as the best environmental option.”

“But, we must continue to reduce energy consumption and for us in the bus industry, this involves finding solutions to increase electricity use.”

Supported by authorities including the Swedish Energy Agency, Volvo is developing a plug-in hybrid bus. It is essentially the same Volvo hybrid bus as today, where the brake energy is recycled and utilized by the electric motor. But, with a new type of battery and charging equipment it will also be possible to charge the battery via the electricity network.

The concept is based on placing battery charging stations at the end stations of the bus lines. By charging the battery there for five to ten minutes, it could significantly extend the time that the bus is able to operate only on electricity.

This could entail distances of up to ten kilometers, with the corresponding advantages in the form of silent traffic with no local emissions. It can be controlled so that the bus operates on electricity in densely populated areas or in particularly sensitive environmental areas, while the diesel engine can be used on other parts of the route.

This technology will generate considerable opportunities to significantly reduce energy consumption. The reason is that electric engines have very high efficiency.

“We expect to be able to reduce the energy consumption in a city bus by up to 65% compared with today’s diesel buses,” says Håkan Karlsson. “And, the plug-in hybrid bus will be able to reduce diesel consumption and thus carbon-dioxide emissions by more than 75%.”

Volvo Buses expects to have a prototype bus ready for testing in 2011. The next step will be taken in autumn 2012, when a field test will commence in Gothenburg using three chargeable hybrid buses. The buses will be put in service with passengers.

The field test project will be implemented in cooperation with Business Region Göteborg, the Traffic Office in Gothenburg City, Västtrafik and Göteborgs Energi, which will be responsible for the charging stations. On Friday, the project was granted a subsidy of Euro 1,4 M from the EU’s program that supports environmental ventures, Life+.

“It is important to the environment that we are able to develop new energy-efficient solutions as rapidly as possible,” says Ulf Gustafsson, Head of Public Affairs at Volvo Buses. “We have the opportunity to succeed because we are capitalizing on the collective expertise of companies, organizations and authorities, and they are jointly investing the funds required.”

The field test will commence in autumn 2012, but Volvo Buses does not know yet when the company will be able to offer this bus in the market.

“It will take a few more years,” says Håkan Karlsson. “But, we are convinced that this is a key step on the path to more efficient public transport and an important step in the effort to reduce global energy consumption.”

"Volvo announced October 17 that it will launch retail sales of its "V60" diesel plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) in 2012 in Europe, in cooperation with Swedish electricity supplier Vattenfall.
Volvo and Vattenfall jointly financed the PHEV development scheme for a car that can claim carbon-dioxide CO2emissions below 50 grams per kilometer (grams/km) – far lower than conventional hybrid cars with internal combustion engines. "Now the project is on the threshold of introducing the market’s first diesel plug-in hybrid," according to Volvo. "It’s an attractive car type that gives the user access to the very best properties of both an electric car and a diesel-powered vehicle: very low fuel consumption and CO2 levels, combined with long range and high performance."

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On June 11 Volvo Buses delivered 25 new hybrid buses to Göteborg, Sweden. This marks a major step in the city’s drive to switch to a fossil fuel-free, quieter and cleaner public transport system.

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The fuel consumption of these hybrid buses is about 37 percent lower than that of regular diesel buses, which in turn cuts carbon dioxide emissions by the same amount.

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To date 725 hybrid buses have been sold in more than 18 countries. For the 260 buses already in regular operation, their total mileage is equivalent to 200 times round the planet.

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Volvo’s hybrid buses feature a small diesel engine and an electric motor. The energy generated when the bus brakes is harnessed, thus helping to radically reduce fuel consumption. At bus stops, the diesel engine is switched off and the bus is propelled electrically – which means quietly and without any exhaust emissions at all.

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