Daimler Truck, Volvo complete “cellcentric” JV

Daimler Truck AG and the Volvo Group today completed the transaction to form their previously announced fuel cell joint venture. The Volvo Group has acquired 50% of the partnership interests in the existing Daimler Truck Fuel Cell GmbH & Co. KG for approximately €0.6 billion ($722 million) on a cash and debt-free basis.

Daimler Truck AG and the Volvo Group have agreed to rename the company cellcentric GmbH & Co. KG. The ambition is to make the new joint venture a leading global manufacturer of fuel-cells, and thus help the world take a major step towards climate-neutral and sustainable transportation by 2050.

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

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

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.