VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland is leading a pilot project involving the SISU Escalate heavy-duty electric truck, which combines a 650-kWh rechargeable battery with a 120-kW hydrogen fuel-cell system. The vehicle is designed to operate primarily on battery electricity, using hydrogen as a secondary energy source during longer journeys.
Manufactured by Sisu Auto, the truck will begin a six-month operational trial in Finland in late 2026. The project will evaluate how the combined powertrain performs under real-world freight transport conditions, with particular attention to energy consumption during cold-weather operation.
The vehicle will travel approximately 540 km per day between Vuosaari harbour in southern Finland and Jyväskylä. Its operating data will be monitored using a digital twin to help engineers assess how the battery and fuel-cell systems perform during daily transport operations.
The pilot will also examine how different charging and refueling strategies affect energy use. The project aims to determine how battery-electric operation can be maximized while using hydrogen to supplement the vehicle’s energy requirements on longer routes.
The truck is equipped for megawatt charging, with Kempower supplying the charging infrastructure and Hevtec responsible for integrating the electric powertrain. IONCOR provides the battery system.
Heavy-duty vehicle operation in Finland presents additional engineering challenges because of the country’s winter climate and higher permitted vehicle weights. The SISU Escalate will operate with a gross combination weight limited to 68 tonnes during the pilot.
The project is part of the EU-funded ESCALATE research initiative, which is evaluating zero-emission powertrain technologies for heavy-duty transport. The truck is a research demonstrator rather than a commercially available vehicle, with findings intended to inform future production designs.
Filed Under: Charging, Technology News