Rolling Energy Storage: MAN Shows the Electric Truck of the Future in Real-World Use
Obertraubling/Regensburg (Germany) – Commercial vehicle manufacturer MAN Truck & Bus has, for the first time, demonstrated bidirectional charging in an electric truck under real operating conditions. As part of the research project SPIRIT-E, the company presented a battery-electric MAN eTGX at a logistics site in Obertraubling near Regensburg that can not only draw electricity but also feed it back.
Bidirectional Charging Opens New Potential in Commercial Transport – Cost Reduction of Up to 20 Percent
According to MAN Truck & Bus, the technology enables several use cases: electricity stored in the vehicle can be used directly at company sites, for example to supply buildings, smooth peak loads, or temporarily store solar power. Supplying other electric vehicles is also possible. In the future, electric trucks could even feed energy back into the public grid.
Through intelligent use of vehicle batteries, energy costs in fleet operations could be reduced by 10 to 20 percent, according to MAN. The company sees regional transport operations with predictable downtime and annual mileage below 100,000 kilometers as particularly suitable.
MAN considers bidirectional charging an additional lever for improving the economic viability of battery-electric commercial vehicles. At the same time, the technology could help stabilize power grids and better integrate renewable energy into the energy system.
Bidirectional Charging Still in Pilot Stage
The MAN eTGX is already available as a production vehicle. However, bidirectional charging is still in the pilot and development phase and is currently being tested in research projects. In SPIRIT-E, the technology was successfully demonstrated under real-world conditions with various applications such as vehicle-to-site, vehicle-to-vehicle, and vehicle-to-grid. Energy flows between vehicle, building infrastructure, and power grid were tested in practice.
Future series deployment depends not only on vehicle hardware but also on software approvals, charging infrastructure, and regulatory frameworks in the energy system.
About the SPIRIT-E Research Project
The SPIRIT-E project is carried out by a consortium of industry, academia, and the energy sector. Partners include the Technical University of Munich as consortium leader, Fraunhofer IEE, the Research Center for Energy Economics (FfE), charging infrastructure provider SBRS, grid operator TenneT, and other partners from energy management and system integration.
The goal is to test the integration of electric commercial vehicles into existing energy infrastructures under real conditions and to develop practical applications for logistics sites. The trials take place in a real-world laboratory at an active logistics location.
Source: IWR Online, 30 Apr 2026
