An unlikely partnership between Metallica and Iveco is behind a fleet of semi-trailers powered by batteries and hydrogen fuel cells.
Will the live music industry take a ‘sustainable’ turn with the announcement that heavy metal giant Metallica will use electric and hydrogen trucks for their upcoming European ‘M72 World Tour’? Partner Iveco will provide heavy-duty trucks for Metallica’s shows in Europe from May to July 2024, and the team will also travel by electric vehicle from concert to concert.
An electric tour
The Italian truck manufacturer and the American heavy metal band have teamed up for the first time. Iveco celebrated the partnership by posting a tweet on its networks, unveiling a special edition livery that the trucks will wear on tour. Metallica is scheduled to stop in 9 major European cities.
The trucks used will be Iveco S-eWAY models, offering up to 500 kilometers of autonomy for the full electric versions and up to 800 kilometers for the fuel cell models. This special fleet will feature a special Metallica livery and will transport the equipment across 9 major European cities. Initially, Iveco planned to also use liquefied natural gas (LNG) trucks, but this idea was abandoned in favor of fully electric vehicles.
“ The band is keen to reduce the carbon footprint of its tours said Gerrit Marx, CEO of Iveco Group, which designs bespoke low-carbon trucks for touring. “ Wherever they have concerts, we can commit to sustainability together “, he added.
A group concerned about its impact on the planet
Metallica had fun declaring that Iveco vehicles will help reduce CO emissions2 of the tour, and several other initiatives will be implemented based on environmental sustainability, a value a priori
embraced by the group. The manufacturer even gave the theme song to its 2024 model year the song It’s Electricperformed by the group in 1998 in the album Garage Inc.but whose words have absolutely nothing to do with sustainable development.
Moreover, we could ask ourselves the question of the scope of this gesture, since if the group indeed seems determined to want to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions, the association between the two partners is also a communication coup. and an exercise in good public relations. Nothing is hotter right now than renewable energy and lower emissions.
Note, however, that Metallica has committed nearly 2 million dollars to support “Metallica scholarship holders”. They include students in the renewable energy sector, such as wind turbine technicians from low-income Texas schools.
Source : Electrive
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