Formosa Plastics to launch EV truck debut in July with prototype

Formosa Plastics Group is slated for an electric vehicle (EV) launch through investment with the Formosa Plastics Transport Corps, supervised by Wang Wen-chao, a member of the Standing Committee of the Formosa Plastics Enterprise Management Center.

The first EV truck prototype will be launched in July. Formosa Plastics Group has invested and obtained three key technologies for EVS, such as batteries, motors, and electronic control, and strives to roll out commercialized products in 2022.

Formosa Plastics Transport Corps Chairman Chen Sheng-kuang said in terms of the most critical battery technology for electric vehicles, the Formosa Plastics Group owns lithium-iron battery technology, designed with light-weight, compact-sized, and long charging mileage as advantages. From materials to battery modules, the Formosa Plastics Group is able to produce it in-house.

The EV product line currently under development by Formosa Plastics Cargo includes 6.5-ton and 12-ton electric trucks, and 10-ton electric minibus series, which all will see varied launching dates between 2022 to 2025. Among them, the 12-ton electric truck is the first to be launched and will be commercialized as soon as 2022.

Wang Wen-chao stated a few days ago that with the electrification of trucks as a future trend, Formosa Plastics Group will not be absent from the new emerging business. Formosa Plastics Transport Corps has been in the truck and heavy-duty market for decades: in 2005, it began to cooperate with the famous European commercial vehicle manufacturer DAF as a distributor in Taiwan for DAF heavy-duty trucks. Later, they invested heavily in the establishment of heavy-duty truck assembly lines in Taiwan. Its subsidiary, Taiyu Automobile is responsible for after-sales service and the entire distribution system in Taiwan. At the end of last year, the cumulative sales of Formosa Plastics-DAF commercial vehicles in Taiwan exceeded 10,000.

With relevant car-making experience and cooperative relations, Chen Sheng-kuang said Formosa Plastics Transport will use DAF truck frames and replace the traditional fuel power system with batteries and motors to build electric trucks. With so many competitive EV products already in the market, Chen said they would choose to enter the niche market for EV trucks first.