The intensive development work for sustainable mobility which Mercedes-Benz Commercial Vehicles has been undertaking for almost three years in the areas of alternative fuels, hybrid drives, e-mobility and fuel-cell technology has once again been publicly recognised. The leading Irish specialist publication "Fleet Transport Magazine" based in Claremorris, County Mayo, has rewarded the Stuttgart commercial vehicle manufacturer with two "Green Commercial of the Year" awards as part of this year's Fleet Transport Awards.

The Irish specialist magazine awards this title to manufacturers whose vehicles not only represent efficient transport solutions but also primarily feature alternative, environmentally-friendly drive technologies, and as a result make a significant contribution to improving the CO2 balance in the haulage sector. All vehicles nominated for the "Green Commercial of the Year" award are put through their paces and also subjected to extensive tests by a qualified expert jury consisting of technical and commercial vehicle journalists.

In the "electric drive" category, the jury awarded top honours to the Mercedes-Benz Vito E CELL. With a payload of around 900 kg, this van is the first commercial vehicle in its class to roll off the assembly line with a purely electric drive (maximum output: 70 kW), powered by extremely powerful lithium-ion batteries capable of withstanding heavy loads. Some 100 units of the vehicle are being produced on the assembly lines of the Spanish factory in Vitoria up until December 2010, and 2000 units are planned to be produced from 2011. Thanks to its emission-free drive system, the Vito E-CELL is ideal for urban use and for particularly environmentally sensitive areas. The Vito E-CELL operates with no emissions and almost silently, and imposes no restrictions on the operator in terms of load capacity and payload.

With its operating range of around 130 km, the Vito E-CELL meets average customer requirements for a daily van mileage of approx. 50 - 80 km with a considerable safety margin. Thanks to a top speed of 80 km/h it is also suitable for the short inter-urban stretches that frequently occur in densely populated areas and suburbs. The batteries of the Vito E-CELL are charged via the 380/400 volt mains. The charging time depends on the charge status of the batteries, and takes a maximum of six hours if the batteries are fully discharged. Using an additional charging cable with a conventional domestic power plug, the Vito E-CELL can also be charged from the 230 volt mains if required.

Commenting at the award presentation ceremony, Volker Mornhinweg, Head of Mercedes-Benz Vans, said: "It is only by maintaining our unrivalled strength for innovation that we can continue to emerge as victors in the future. And this means focusing our development efforts squarely on our goal of sustainable mobility. Cars have to be environmentally compatible, efficient, emission-free and quiet – while at the same time also being safe, comfortable and quick."

The title of "Green Commercial of the Year" in the hybrid category was also awarded to a Mercedes-Benz commercial vehicle. The victor in this case was the Atego BlueTec Hybrid. The platform of the distributor vehicle with hybrid drive is based around the Atego 1222 L EEV. The basic vehicle already meets the environmentally-friendly EEV standard and travels toll-free on German roads. Its compact and light four-cylinder diesel engine with a displacement of 4.8 litres develops 160 kW (218 hp). This is complemented by the water-cooled electric motor with a maximum output of 44 kW and powered by high-energy, high-performance lithium-ion batteries.

The electric motor is positioned behind the combustion engine and clutch, but in front of the transmission. With this design, engine and electric motor can drive the truck individually or in combination. This architecture (parallel hybrid drive) permits electric start-off, recuperation, boosting by the electric motor, as well as optimisation of the characteristics of the diesel engine. Engagement of the drive power of the diesel engine occurs via the coupling between the diesel engine and the electric motor. Until that point, the diesel engine is only used to drive the ancillary units. This not only makes for a significant reduction in fuel consumption and exhaust emissions of up to 15 percent, but also lower noise emissions.

At the start of 2011, a fleet of 50 Atego BlueTec Hybrid vehicles will be delivered to German customers in the distribution transportation sector to demonstrate the suitability for everyday use of this important future technology. The vehicles are to be incorporated into the "Electric mobility promotion programme" of the Federal Ministry of Transport, Building and Urban Affairs (BMVBS).

Hubertus Troska, Head of Mercedes-Benz Trucks, is delighted by the awards from the Irish specialist publication and sees them as an endorsement of the company's long-term development work: "We are about to embark on series production of the Atego BlueTec Hybrid, which will mark the start of a new phase of our CleanDrive Technologies. Daimler is already the world's market leader in green commercial vehicles and has delivered around 15,000 vehicles using alternative drives to customers. We expect to continue to make further advances in this area with the hybrid model of the Atego."