Lufthansa to trial Porto-designed electric vehicle for ground handling

Lufthansa Ground Services Portugal (LGSP) and CEiiA – the Porto-based Centre for Engineering and Product Development – have signed an agreement to use BEN, an electric vehicle developed from scratch by CEiiA, in its ground handling operations.

“The partnership agreement between the two organisations will see a fleet of BEN electric vehicles deployed for aircraft ramp support and bespoke ground handling services at airports; the vehicles were tested in September and are due to enter service in 2027,” they stated in the same press release.

This is “the first time that an airline group of Lufthansa’s size” has adopted the vehicle developed by CEiiA, “a choice that places Portuguese engineering at the heart of European airport mobility”.

The partnership between LGSP and CEiiA advances “a decarbonisation agenda that goes beyond fleet renewal”, say the two companies, pointing out that “ground handling services involve constant movement between aircraft, terminals and operational areas”, and that “a compact, modular electric vehicle such as the BEN makes it possible to significantly reduce energy consumption, operating costs and the environmental footprint of the activity”.

“The collaboration also includes the use of CEiiA’s AYR technology”, which will serve to promote “carbon neutrality in the company’s operations” and can be replicated at other airports and infrastructure sites.

“The partnership with Lufthansa Ground Services Portugal is an excellent opportunity for our BEN to demonstrate its potential to contribute to more sustainable mobility at airports and other infrastructure sites in Portugal and across Europe,” said Helena Silva, CTO (director responsible for technology) at CEiiA, quoted in the press release.

The agreement also links “the emissions avoided through the use of BEN to Help Alliance Portugal”, meaning that “the value of the carbon credits generated can be returned to local communities, funding projects with a social impact”.

Help Alliance is the Lufthansa Group’s non-profit organisation, with over 25 years of activity and 87 social projects across several continents, which is set to launch its first branch outside Germany in Portugal.

“Choosing BEN was a strategic decision and, at the same time, a statement of confidence in the best that Portugal has to offer. We want to decarbonise our ground operations without compromising on efficiency, and BEN meets this challenge perfectly,” said Paulo Geisler, CEO of Lufthansa Ground Services Portugal.

The agreement between LGSP and CEiiA will be signed on Monday in Porto, and the fleet will begin trial operations at Porto and Lisbon airports as early as September.

On a more general note, Lufthansa is one of only two airline groups bidding to buy in to Portugal’s flagship airline, TAP.

Source: Lusa

Natasha Donn

Journalist for the Portugal Resident.