The European SEA TERMINALS project led by the Fundación Valenciaport and involving the Port Authority of Valencia and Noatum will begin testing the first European prototype of a 100% electric terminal tractor, developed by Terberg, as well as a reach stacker and an empty container handler, both equipped with technologies to save fuel and reduce CO2 emissions, developed by Hyster (NACCO Materials Handling Group) in September. These pilots will take place at the facilities of the Noatum Container Terminal in Valencia.
To conduct these pilot tests, Terberg and Hyster have developed the aforementioned prototypes in their respective factories in the Netherlands. Terberg has faced various engineering challenges in manufacturing the prototype of the electric terminal tractor, such as the design of the energy transmission and storage system (lithium iron phosphate batteries), as well as the hydraulics system and the 24 volt mains connection for recharging the tractor.
The electric vehicle prototype has zero local emissions of carbon and greenhouse gases, in contrast to traditional terminal tractors that run on diesel engines. Other notable features include the ability to operate in enclosed installations and low noise pollution, as well as sufficient autonomy for eight hour shifts thanks to the design of its battery pack.