[Interview] Volta Trucks: it’s not over ’til it’s over. Back to the basics to succeed in ‘Phoenix Mode’

Let’s get familiar with v1 and v2, respectively identifying the first and second life of Volta Trucks (or Volta Commercial Vehicles, this is the new name). In the middle is the bankruptcy, announced in October 2023, which seemed to have put an end to one of the most interesting EV projects in commercial transportation. Some important issues with the supply chain, as well as missing trust from former investors made all this happen. Since then, ‘a bunch of brave people’ started to think that ‘it’s not over ‘til it’s over’, looked for new investors and set the new Volta Trucks in Phoenix mode.

Among these people are Carla Detrieux, Director of business development, and Anthony Buron, Area Sales Manager France. We had a very pleasant and honest conversation with them, trying to understand why the v1 did not work, and why the v2 is supposed to be different. They talked about possible mistakes made in the first stage, and explained what has changed now.

From the bankruptcy to the ‘new’ Volta Trucks

Let’s start with the bad news we all were forced to give in October 2023. What happened since then?

Carla Detrieux. “Simple answer: a lot! On our side, we decided to truly focus our efforts on building trucks, and delivering on some key pillars. Starting from the need to re-assemble our supply chain, which was very fragmented. In this regard, we are also working on mitigating risks and increasing our resilience. Our first goal was to have a bunch of 50 vehicles, which we call the moonshot series. This fleet was built in Steyr, which is still our partner.

“Another important pillar was working with all our legacy customers to re-engage them. Also, in this v2 we have been questioning ourselves about having a more pragmatic business plan. In v1, we were thinking we could revolutionize not only the truck industry, but also the bodybuilding sector, imposing one standard when it comes to the bodies”.

What made you change your mind, then?

CD. “The truth is that fleets need a more flexible approach. That was the wrong way to address the market. It’s OK to be a disruptor, but if you don’t bring value to your customers, then it’s not enough. That’s why we shifted to making chassis cabs in v2. Also, we want to be a manufacturer now, we’re not a service company anymore. We really want to focus on what we know best. Whereas before we had this truck-as-a-service approach, which still makes a lot of sense, it’s heavy for us to implement as a startup. Instead, in v2 we decided to try and build a network for our customers in terms of services, financing partners, rental companies, service and assistance.

Finally, another key pillar is of course securing capital. It’s extremely challenging from a startup point of view. You see all that’s happening in automotive in Europe right now. Luxor is a legacy investor for us, which managed to bring the company back on track, but there’s a lot more to do in this sense”.

The involvement of Proterra in the end of v1

One of the reasons why Volta Trucks collapsed was the trouble in battery supply. Who’s the current supplier? What’s changed in the supply chain of key components?

CD. “Yes, Proterra’s financial situation was one of the reasons that caused our company’s collapse, as we know. This made us reflect on some things that we’re trying to improve in v2. There was also our responsibility in wanting to grow perhaps too fast. In v1, we had people all over Europe, in the U.S., in Saudi Arabia. It was too much. We wanted to come to market very fast, so we set a partnership with Proterra and relied only on them”.

Anthony Buron. “Also, the context was definitely too challenging, as we see also in these days, for instance in the battery manufacturing sector. We’re focusing on less things compared to the past, we think it’s the best way”.

What about the people working for Volta Trucks?

CD. “We’re relying on a team of about 150 people. Most of us are ‘veterans’, like Anthony and I. It’s been incredible to feel the energy coming from all those people, mostly coming from v1. I can say it’s more than a job for us”.

The chassis cab in addition to the all-in-one solution

Strictly talking about the trucks, what’s changed compared to the first stage of the Volta Trucks project?

AB. “Basically, the fact that we’re focusing on the production of chassis cabs. To be honest, the discussion about shifting to chassis cabs was there also in v1, some of us were pushing for it. In addition, I can tell you what our previous customers here in France kept telling me: ‘your products are great, drivers really like the vehicles, the issue is about you, guys, and your business model’. So, what we’re doing now is to build trust again and be reliable. We needed to find a new way to make business out of that”.

Is the chassis cab the only available version of the Volta Zero?

AB. “No, we have both options, so chassis cab and full vehicle with the body behind the cab, we call it all-in-one solution. The only thing is that we don’t manage it internally, but rather work with trusted partners on it. Also, we have two vehicle types, the 16-ton and the 18-ton truck, both coming with two different wheelbase options and two different battery options. It’s a simplified scenario compared to v1. They have basically the same platform for the two truck options. Another different thing is that we’re not looking only at distribution as possible applications of the truck, but rather towing applications, beverage customers, and so on. We have pilots available across Europe now”.

How is the after-sales managed now?

CD. “We won’t develop our after-sales network. There are companies that have developed extensive networks in several years, so we’re trying to set partnerships with reliable and certified providers. Some of them are more national or regional, some of them are international”.

The key issue of communication

Volta Trucks used to communicate a lot, while now there’s no communication anymore. Why such a big change?

CD. “It’s frustrating for me, too, as I’m supposed to manage communication. Things may change quite soon. We know that we need to communicate more compared to what we have done so far, and showcase the Volta Zero as we used to do in v1. Time will come”.

What about customers? How difficult was it to work with them once again and be trusted by them?

AB. “Some customers had already put orders on the table, which we were forced to cancel. It’s not easy to come back to them after the bankruptcy. Also, we have been able to approach a lot of other customers which did not have orders in v1″.

CD. “There’s no checklist when you must build trust. You must be transparent, also vulnerable, let’s say. We’ve had conversations with customers, with suppliers and stakeholders. We speak to people inside organizations, trying to touch them emotionally and find out how we can truly change transportation, making it less polluting”.

Which markets are you approaching in Europe?

CD. “We sell our trucks in Austria, France, UK, Germany, and the Nordics. We’ve also had conversations in Italy and in Belgium. We’re expanding our markets in Europe”.