Ceva Logistics and BMW are testing electric car transporters

As part of a pilot project, Ceva Logistics has been transporting new BMW and Mini vehicles from the Marly-La-Ville location to a partner network in the Paris region since September. The company is using an electric car transporter to test its practicality in urban and suburban areas. The program will run until the end of the first quarter of 2025, “after which a full evaluation will take place”.

This is a first for Ceva Logistics. The Marseille-based logistics service provider is ambitious and wants to expand its global fleet of electric vehicles to 1,450 units (currently 450 units) by the end of 2025. However, the company does not yet have an electrically powered car transporter in its fleet.

The partners do not provide any information about the Volvo Trucks electric truck involved in the test. However, a press photo shows that the body comes from Lohr and the truck is based on a Volvo FM Electric. According to Ceva Logistics, the truck “will be charged between trips if necessary or in the evening after returning to the Marly-la-Ville site”. The daily distance is 270 kilometers, it is said. Across the entire test program, that should be a total of 30,000 kilometers.

Whether Ceva and BMW will then continue with the electric vehicle depends on the evaluation of the telematics data. The results “will be crucial for the continuation of the project,” it says. However, BMW Group France expressly emphasizes that it wants to use the solution on a larger scale in collaboration with Ceva. Both sides have known each other for a long time, as the partnership between CEVA Logistics and BMW Group France has existed since 2018 and was recently extended for another two years. In this context, Ceva Logistics transports around 90,000 vehicles from Marly-la-Ville, Marckolsheim and Le Havre every year.

Vincent Salimon, CEO of BMW Group France, comments:
“Reducing the carbon impact of our activities is essential to our CSR strategy in France, especially for the distribution of our new vehicles. That’s why we’re proud to partner with CEVA Logistics to accelerate the decarbonization of our logistics and remain at the forefront of integrating sustainable development into our operations.”

Emmanuel Cheremetinski, Head of Global Finished Vehicle Logistics at Ceva Logistics, added: “We are particularly proud of the partnership we have built with BMW Group France over the last six years. Year after year we have demonstrated our ability to meet the most demanding logistics requirements of a leading automobile manufacturer. This electric car transporter pilot project is a testament to our shared determination to implement more sustainable logistics solutions together with our customers.”

Ceva plans to deploy 1,000 electric delivery vans, 300 electric trucks and 150 electric semi-trailers for its own fleet as well as general cargo and last-mile deliveries next year. In addition, electric vehicles are used in special projects such as the European Clean Transport Network joint venture launched in 2023. The project, driven by Ceva and others, aims to build and operate a network of refueling and charging stations for hydrogen, biogas and electric trucks on European highways.

Ceva describes itself as a representative of third-party logistics with a wide range of complete solutions in contract logistics, air, sea and land transport as well as the transport of finished vehicles. The Marseille-based group says it employs around 110,000 people at over 1,300 locations worldwide. In addition to the vehicles in its own operating model, Ceva also wants to accelerate the switch to electric vehicles for some of its subcontractors.

cevalogistics.com