Volvo CE acquires majority stake in Limach

Volvo Construction Equipment has acquired a majority stake in Dutch company Limach, manufacturer of electric excavators.

Volvo CE can quickly expand its portfolio of electric machines with the partial acquisition. The majority investment offers Limach the opportunity to grow further, including outside the Netherlands.

Limach builds customized electric crawler excavators and wheeled excavators for the Dutch market. Conventional Volvo machines form the basis for this. Limach replaces the combustion engine with a self-developed electrification kit. Limach's range extends from the compact 1,810-kg E18.3 mini to the 14-ton E140.1.

Knowledge and expertise

'Now that Volvo CE has acquired a majority stake, we can call on the knowledge and expertise within the group when it comes to the electrification of construction machinery. This offers us many advantages. For example, we can use Volvo's CAD data. It also offers advantages in terms of CE marking,' says Henri de Groot, CTO at Limach. 'Moreover, through Volvo we get access to international markets.' According to De Groot, the intention is for Volvo to supply Limach with the machines without a diesel engine.

Scaling up production

Rens de Bruijn, CEO of Limach: 'Limach was founded with the aim of developing construction machinery with an electric drive system. Each machine is custom made in our production facility in Ede and delivered according to customer specifications. Since the development of our first demonstration excavator in 2017, we have seen a growing demand from customers in the Netherlands. Thanks to Volvo CE's investment, we can scale up production of our electric excavators and expand the range to meet this growing demand for electric drives.'

'As a leader in electrical construction solutions, we see Limach as an interesting player in a progressive market and a great addition to our existing portfolio of electrical machines. Our customers benefit from a wider range to meet their requirements,' said Thomas Bitter, Head of Technology at Volvo CE.

Limach continues to operate as an independent company.