Volvo Construction Equipment (Volvo CE) announced that in 2020, it will start the launch of an electric range of Volvo-branded compact wheel loaders and compact excavators. Volvo will discontinue new diesel engine-based development of the EC15 to EC27 compact excavators and L20 to L28 wheel loaders and will launch these as electric units.

With this move, Volvo CE is the first construction equipment manufacturer to commit to an electric future for its compact machine range. This follows an overwhelmingly favorable reaction from the market after the successful unveiling of a number of concept machines in recent years, and by working closely with customers, according to the company.

The first machines will be unveiled in April 2019, followed by a staged market-by-market introduction and ramp up in 2020.

While the company stresses that diesel combustion currently remains the most appropriate power source for its larger machines, electric propulsion and battery technology is proving particularly suited to Volvo’s smaller equipment.

“The technology we have been developing is now sufficiently robust and this, together with changes in customer behavior and a heightened regulatory environment, means that now is the right time to commit to electromobility in our compact equipment ranges in the future,” company President Melker Jernberg stated in a release.