Mercedes-Benz Trucks says it has taken another step towards making megawatt charging usable for long-haul operations, after testing two eActros 600 prototypes on a 2,400-kilometre winter route across five countries and confirming that megawatt charging is possible even in cold conditions. The company is now preparing real-world customer trials of MCS-capable trucks in the second half of 2026.
The test drive ran from Germany through the Netherlands, Belgium and Denmark to Sweden, with the vehicles charging at both public and private MCS sites designed for trucks. One of the trucks then continued to the Finnish Arctic Circle, where it was tested at temperatures as low as –20°C. According to Daimler Truck, the main aim was to improve compatibility between the vehicle and charging stations from different manufacturers and to gather more data on how megawatt charging performs in winter conditions.
Daimler Truck says the eActros 600 is moving closer to real-world megawatt charging use.
Daimler Truck says it will carry out further interoperability testing with charger manufacturers in the coming months, while also taking part in Germany’s HoLa high-performance charging project. More importantly, the company says the first customer trials of MCS-capable eActros 600 trucks in real logistics operations will begin in the second half of 2026. An MCS-capable charging station is also planned at its Wörth am Rhein site from mid-year.
The eActros 600 prototypes were charged at truck-specific MCS sites during the test programme.
Infrastructure still the bigger hurdle
Even so, the wider direction of travel is becoming clearer. Europe’s truck charging build-out is moving forward, but the scale of the challenge remains huge. According to the ICCT, the EU will need between 4,000 and 5,300 public megawatt chargers by 2030 to support the growing electric truck fleet. The same study estimates total truck charging needs at 22–28 GW by 2030, including 150,000–175,000 private chargers and 60,000–80,000 public chargers across the EU.
At the same time, AFIR has already set binding minimum targets for heavy-duty recharging infrastructure along the TEN-T network. A European Parliament background paper on the regulation says dedicated HDV recharging infrastructure is mandated every 60 km on the TEN-T core network and every 100 km on the comprehensive network, with full coverage due by 2030. That means the policy framework is in place, but the real test will be whether infrastructure deployment and truck technology develop quickly enough together.
Germany’s HoLa project offers one glimpse of that transition. Fraunhofer ISI says the first public truck charging point in the project went into operation in September 2025 and can deliver up to 1.2 megawatts. The institute says the project is designed to test the reliability, interoperability and performance of high-power truck charging in daily conditions.
Mercedes says winter testing showed the eActros 600 can handle megawatt charging in real operating conditions.
