IN Brief:
- Zero-emission drayage is moving from pilots to fleet commitments in Europe.
- IKEA and LC3 are deploying eActros 600 trucks on Genoa and La Spezia routes.
- The programme targets over 1.2 million zero-emission kilometres annually.
Inter IKEA Group has launched a fully electrified heavy road transport project in Italy with logistics partner LC3 Trasporti and Mercedes-Benz Trucks, scaling up battery-electric drayage and regional distribution from Italy’s key container ports into IKEA’s domestic network.
The partners said two battery-electric vehicles are already operating, with the fleet due to expand to more than ten Mercedes-Benz eActros 600 trucks by the third quarter of 2026. The trucks will be used for daily container transport services to and from the ports of Genoa and La Spezia, with destinations including IKEA’s Piacenza distribution centre, while also supporting daily store deliveries across Northern Italy departing from the same logistics hub.
Once fully operational, the programme is expected to deliver more than 1,200,000 kilometres of zero-emission travel per year, with the partners describing this as eliminating CO₂ emissions from the routes covered. The project also points to a secondary operational benefit that matters in dense delivery environments: the companies said the switch to electric vehicles enables zero noise emissions, improving the viability of night-time deliveries and reducing localised noise exposure near retail locations.
Ewelina Taylor, Global Transport Manager at Inter IKEA Group, said: “This is an ambitious project aimed at significantly reducing our transportation climate footprint in Italy. Thanks to this new triangle partnership we’re able to define the optimal set up together and come up with a solution that reduce the total costs, while also contributing to a cleaner and quieter environment, which is an essential part of our mission of creating a better everyday life.”
For LC3 Trasporti, the move is positioned as a scale play rather than a trial. Michele Ambrogi, Commercial Director of LC3 Trasporti, said: “This project marks a turning point for LC3 Trasporti. The energy transition is a challenge we have chosen to face with determination. The introduction of the eActros 600 in partnership with IKEA and Daimler Truck Italia demonstrates that collaboration across the supply chain is the only real driver of change. The time for isolated experiments is over – what we need now are scalable, concrete, zero-impact solutions.”
The vehicle platform itself is designed for predictable long-haul and regional schedules. Mercedes-Benz Trucks says the eActros 600 uses three LFP battery packs totalling around 621 kWh, with a stated range of 500 km without recharging, and CCS2 charging up to 400 kW, positioning it for routes where charging can be structured into depot and corridor planning rather than improvised mid-shift.
Maurizio Pompei, CEO of Daimler Truck Italia, said: “Seeing it enter service in a project of this scale, alongside two forward-thinking companies such as LC3 and IKEA, confirms that the energy transition is already happening. This is a virtuous example of how technological innovation can seamlessly align with environmental sustainability and operational efficiency.”
Operationally, the project sits in the hardest part of logistics decarbonisation: heavy-duty movement, tight schedules, and high utilisation expectations. The detail that matters is not the branding of “electric” — it is the commitment to daily port runs, a defined hub, and a fleet size that starts to look like a planning assumption, not a sustainability headline.
