Funding Europe's Electric Freight: Milence Secures €120 Million for Charging Network Expansion
Amsterdam, Wednesday 6 May 2026
Milence has secured a €120 million loan to rapidly scale its pan-European electric truck charging network, a vital infrastructure investment to decarbonise heavy road freight.
Bridging the Capital Gap in Heavy Transport
Yesterday, on 5 May 2026, Amsterdam-based Milence announced a €120 million financing agreement to accelerate the deployment of high-capacity charging hubs for electric heavy goods vehicles across Europe [2]. This debt facility marks the joint venture’s first foray into the broader capital markets, augmenting the initial €500 million equity injection provided by its founding shareholders: Daimler Truck, the Traton Group, and the Volvo Group [2]. A significant portion of this new capital comes from the Dutch state fund Invest-NL, which committed €25 million [1]. This specific contribution represents exactly 20.833 percent of the total debt facility [1][2].
Expanding the Physical Footprint
The commercial rationale for this infrastructure push is deeply tied to regional decarbonisation targets. Heavy freight vehicles represent a mere 2 percent of the total European Union road fleet, yet they are responsible for over 25 percent of the bloc’s road transport emissions [1]. To address this disparity, Milence currently operates 34 charging hubs [1][2][3]. While official corporate communications note a presence in nine European countries [3], earlier reports indicate operations spanning eight nations [1][2] [alert! ‘Slight discrepancy in source reporting regarding the exact number of countries with operational hubs’]. Currently, the wider European network only offers around 1,800 charging points suitable for heavy trucks distributed along major freight corridors, underscoring the pressing need for rapid expansion [2].
Technological Leap with Megawatt Charging
Beyond simply expanding its geographic footprint, Milence is allocating funds towards advanced energy transition hardware. A key technological milestone is the deployment of the Megawatt Charging System (MCS) [2][3]. The enterprise is currently installing MCS technology at three of its hubs and is actively developing Europe’s first dedicated MCS corridor [2]. This high-performance hardware drastically reduces charging times, a critical factor for the logistical viability and turnaround times of electric road freight [GPT].