UAE: Middle East’s first 100% electric garbage collection trucks roll out in Abu Dhabi

Abu Dhabi: The Abu Dhabi Waste Management PJSC (Tadweer) has launched the Middle East’s first fully-electric heavy truck for collecting household waste.

The move supports the emirate’s Environment Vision 2030 as well as the UAE’s Net Zero by 2050 target, Tadweer said today.

The roll out comes in collaboration with Renault Trucks Middle East and Al Masaood. The truck was manufactured by Renault Trucks, under the dealership of Al Masaood, following the signing of an agreement between Tadweer and Al Masaood during the recent EcoWaste Exhibition and Conference.

Being the first 100 per cent electric heavy truck operating in the region, the Renault Trucks E-tech truck will also run a pilot programme to gauge the vehicle’s performance in the high temperatures of the capital’s summer heat, in addition to addressing logistical challenges such as charging station availability along key routes.

Cleaner air

The Renault Trucks D-Wide E-tech has “already demonstrated its effectiveness and performance” in Europe, Tadweer said, with urban centres like Paris and Barcelona adopting nearly 100 of the trucks each to fulfil their commitments to sustainability and their communities. By using these electric trucks, these two cities will remove more than 4,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide from the environment each year, equivalent to removing 1,000 cars from the roads annually.

With a range of up to 200 kilometres between charges, the trucks have “already proven their worthiness” from a zero-emissions and performance perspective. Tadweer said it is keen to start operating the electric truck on Abu Dhabi’s roads to assess and monitor the vehicle’s performance in summer temperatures.

Recently, the federal government committed to placing more than 800 Electric Vehicle charging stations across the country.

Ali Al Dhaheri, managing director and CEO of Tadweer, said: “Tadweer has established its position as a pioneer in waste management and driving a sustainable future. The company incorporates state-of-the-art and modern technologies to ensure successful operation, while supporting Abu Dhabi’s Environment Vision 2030 and the UAE’s Net Zero by 2050 ambitions as well.”

Olivier De Saint Meleuc, president of Renault Trucks International, said: “The imperative for today is to tackle global warming, and we are proud that our state-of-the-art trucks are able to address the global requirement for low or zero emission vehicles, and to also contribute to the UAE’s visionary Net Zero 2050 strategic ambition.”

Mohamed El Zeftawi, general manager of Al Masaood’s Commercial Vehicles and Equipment division, said: “At Al Masaood, we have made a tangible and firm commitment to support the nation in meeting its Net Zero 2050 strategic initiative, and we do recognise that as a key industrial player in the nation’s capital and in the country as a whole, that we do bear a heavy responsibility in not only lowering our greenhouse emissions, but by providing innovative solutions to private and public partners to help mitigate their own emissions.”