Momentum for the Green segment | DEUTZ AG Annual Report 2023

Bert, DEUTZ has defined three clear directions along which it will continue to develop, namely Classic, Service, and Green. How is it looking at Green?

Bert van Hasselt: Well, while the objectives and development paths are relatively straightforward in the Classic and Service segments, we at Green have to contend with several unknowns. By that I mean what is the optimum climate-friendly drive technology for the various fields of application? But also where is the demand in the market and which new partners should we choose when creating a green ecosystem? There’s a lot that we can already build on at Green, but we will also be making some changes and restructuring in order to become more agile and accelerate our business development.

How important for DEUTZ Green is the order for 100 hydrogen engines?

Bert van Hasselt: The first large order for our new hydrogen-powered gensets is a strategic milestone – and brings us a big step closer to becoming climate-neutral. And going into production with these engines will help us to build even further on our expertise in hydrogen technology, and that will make DEUTZ more competitive.

Aside from this major order, are there any other important developments to report at DEUTZ Green?

Bert van Hasselt: Yes, absolutely. We also have other green solutions ready for commercial production in our electric business, namely the PowerTree, our proprietary DEUTZ battery, and our 360-volt drive system. These are all products that we have developed and brought to production readiness so that we can now offer our customers environmentally friendly solutions that emit no CO₂.

Can you tell us a little more about the 360-volt system?

Bert van Hasselt: Of course. Our 360-volt system is robust and specially designed for use in off-road or on-road applications that put high demands on the drive system. The basic platform is now ready to roll off the production lines and we will continue to develop it in the future so that we can offer a range of different systems. This ‘e-system’ also gives us an excellent solution for retrofits of existing diesel-powered applications. All in all, the key benefit for the customer is that we are able to offer a complete system from a single source as well as global service coverage.

So, what does the future hold for DEUTZ Green?

Bert van Hasselt: 2023 was a very good year for the Green segment, in which we continuously added to our project pipeline. As well as the big order from China and other hydrogen projects, we are delighted to be involved in ten projects with OEM partners in the field of battery-electric systems and in a maiden production program for battery systems with Kärcher. We are very confident that the future looks just as positive, not least because the restructuring of Green as a standalone organization in 2024 will give it even greater momentum. And we will continue to invest. Indeed, our aim is to have spent a total of €100 million on driving forward our Green activities in the period 2023 through 2025.