Fleet solutions company Everlectric will this year expand its commercial electric vehicle (EV) range by introducing larger vehicles in the form of urban distribution trucks and upsized panel vans.

The company believes the expansion marks a turning point for commercial fleet electrification in South Africa, as the use of EVs has, up to now, been limited largely to smaller panel vans used in pilot studies and operating on tightly defined routes.

The next generation of vehicles entering Everlectric’s EV fleet portfolio is aimed at unlocking heavier payloads, longer daily distances and more demanding urban distribution use cases.

Everlectric currently manages more than 200 EVs, which have collectively travelled more than 10-million kilometres, across multiple commercial fleet clients in South Africa.

“These new vehicle classes change the conversation,” says Everlectric cofounder Wesley van der Walt.

“We are seeing delivery vans and urban trucks that are built specifically for commercial duty cycles, not adapted from passenger platforms.

“This is important when vehicles are running full days, carrying consistent loads and returning to depots every night.”

Last-mile delivery, retail replenishment, pharmaceutical distribution and service fleets all operate on predictable routes with high stop-start intensity and defined return-to-base patterns, notes Van der Walt.

These conditions favour electrification, provided the vehicle can meet payload and range requirements without operational trade-offs.

Alongside its new, heavier vehicle offering, Everlectric is also expanding its lineup targeted at technicians, sales representatives and field-service teams, as new compact electric options enable these segments to electrify without sacrificing vehicle size, or cost, adds Van der Walt.

“What we are unlocking is choice. Fleet operators can now match the right vehicle class to the actual work being done, rather than forcing EVs into roles they were never designed for.

“When you look at the full picture, the total cost of ownership of a fleet EV is now typically around 15% lower than an equivalent petrol or diesel vehicle,” says Van der Walt.

“That is what is driving adoption now – not theory, but real operating data.”

Everlectric expects its expanded vehicle range to accelerate adoption among fleets that have been waiting for EVs that fit their operating profiles.

“Many operators were not wrong to wait,” says Van der Walt.

“The vehicles simply were not there yet. In 2026, that will change. We are now seeing EVs that are designed for the realities of urban delivery and distribution, not just for demonstration purposes.”