Sustainable Truck of the Year 2025: the awards go to Volvo Trucks, IVECO and Renault Trucks

The awarding ceremony of the Sustainable Truck of the Year 2025, the only prizes in Europe expressly devoted to sustainability in commercial transportation, was held on the evening of January 16. The event, broadcast on an Italian TV channel, was made available online also in the digital channels of Sustainable Truck&Van. The awards went to Volvo Trucks for the FH Aero 460 in the Tractor category; the new IVECO Eurocargo CNG in the Distribution category; and the Renault Trucks E-Tech Master in the Van category. This year, the jury introduced a brand-new category, called E-Truck, devoted to heavy-duty electric-powered trucks coming to the market. The Volvo FH Aero Electric was the first-ever winning vehicle in such category.

The ceremony also featured an interview with Gabriele Tempesta, operations manager of LeNSlab at the Milan Polytechnic, an institution aimed at developing and promoting innovative ways of designing products with a focus on increased sustainability. Tempesta explained how this approach can bring significant benefits, environmental and otherwise, when applied to the commercial transportation sector.

The scenario in a challenging sector

“In the current, rather challenging market environment, commercial vehicle manufacturers are continuing to come up with viable solutions to reduce the vehicles’ carbon footprint,” said Fabio Zammaretti, Chairman of the Sustainable Truck of the Year Awards. “The plurality of solutions awarded by the jury this year is a sign of an increasingly diverse market in which different technologies are expected to coexist. We think that the introduction of the new e-Truck category is useful to better define the scope of use of electric trucks that are emerging in the current market scenario”.

The e-Truck category, introduced this year for the first time, is addressed to medium- to long-distance electric trucks with no tonnage limits. The ninth edition of the prestigious award then kept the other three categories unchanged: Tractor (vehicles up to 44 Ton); Distribution (vehicles up to 26 ton, 2 or 3 axles); Van (vehicles up to 3,5 ton). For the evaluation of the vehicles in the competition, 40 technical parameters are taken into consideration, divided into 6 macro areas, such as engine, transmission, safety, comfort, connectivity, and sustainability.

Sustainable Truck of the Year 2025: winners and reasons

Tractor: Volvo FH Aero 460

Overcoming the 30-year mark, the Volvo FH winner of the Sustainable Truck of the Year in the Tractor category has proven its improvements in terms of efficiency and performance. With the Aero version, unveiled in early 2024, the Swedish truck maker has done fine work by taking advantage of the possibilities granted by the 2019 European truck weight and dimensions regulations, mainly focusing on aerodynamics.

A longer front area (by 240 mm) allowed the front section to be better connected with the side of the vehicle, eliminating annoying swirls and promoting better airflow. Similarly, the adoption of the Camera monitoring system provides the FH Aero with better energy efficiency and a reduction in fuel consumption of up to 5 percent. A result confirmed by the fresh all-time record set by the FH Aero 460 in the 500 km Vado e Torno Supertest: 4.29 km/liter.

Distribution: IVECO Eurocargo CNG

The Eurocargo has crossed the history of trucking over the past three-plus decades, keeping its appeal and competitiveness intact without ever upsetting its basic approach and philosophy. Even dressed in the garb of the most recent model year, the IVECO Eurocargo continues to exalt first and foremost its versatility, meaning the ability to meet quite a wide range of uses in the best possible way. At the same time, the truck managed to become more elegant in style and even richer in content.

These features can also be found on board the CNG version of the Eurocargo, powered by the new 6.7-liter Tector 7 engine. An even more high-performance and environmentally friendly powertrain, which the mid-size IVECO offers in three different power levels (220, 250, 280 hp), combined with the eight gears of the ZF 8-HP automated transmission. Precision, speed and smooth driving are guaranteed.

Van: Renault Trucks Master E-Tech

The one awarded this year in the Van category is another vehicle that has made history, this time in light urban transport. And even today, when the increasingly large and fierce competition, European but also Asian, is showing its claws by aiming to win over customers with variously appealing sirens, the Master is not changing course, thus following the path traced over the years.

The Renault Trucks Master E-Tech has entered the electrification trend, putting on the scales the strength of a model that, appreciated for its qualities of sturdiness, cargo capacity and performance, confirms them even in its full electric version. With a modern design and a sleek front that does not go unnoticed, the new Master E-Tech improves ergonomics, comfort, functionality and interior practicality. Also, as for performances, the Master paves the way in terms of battery capacity (up to 87 kWh), and promised range (up to 460 km).

e-Truck: Volvo FH Aero Electric

The Aero version of the battery-powered FH (with four to six battery packs) ensures a capacity of up to 540 kWh guaranteeing 490 kW (666 hp) power, while keeping its sleek styling and modern smoothness, according to the DNA that has always distinguished Volvo’s flagship heavy-duty roadster. Starting with the concept of safety, a true pillar in the Swedish brand’s truck models.

In short, the Volvo FH Aero Electric is designed according to the most up-to-date ergonomic criteria, capable of biting the road in absolute silence (a feature not so taken for granted even for a battery-powered heavy truck) and offering an experience that enhances driving stress-free pleasure. On the sustainability side, in addition to the increasing use of green steel in vehicle construction, Volvo ensures a recyclability rate of more than 92 percent on materials, with the possibility to recover about 98 percent of materials.

Read about the previous edition here: Sustainable Truck of the Year 2024: MAN, DAF and IVECO won the awards in the three categories