UK engineering company Equipmake has introduced a new vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) energy transfer system designed to keep electric fire engines running during prolonged emergencies, addressing a major operational hurdle for battery-powered heavy vehicles.
The year-long project, presented at the Cenex Expo 2025, centers on the Zero Emission Pumping Appliance (ZEPA) V2V application. The system enables one electric vehicle to supply more than 200 kilowatts of power directly to another, replicating the refueling process used by diesel-powered fire engines. Equipmake said the approach ensures uninterrupted operation of pumps during extended firefighting efforts.
Two fully electric fire appliances equipped with the ZEPA V2V system are being showcased at Cenex and are scheduled for real-world testing with the London Fire Brigade later this year. While developed for emergency services, the company said the technology could support a wide range of energy-intensive sectors including logistics, disaster relief, construction and mining.
Ian Foley, CEO of Equipmake, said the project demonstrates how a long-standing obstacle to electrifying specialist vehicles can be overcome. “For the firefighting sector, this technology means extended, uninterrupted, and entirely zero-emission pumping capability […] Beyond firefighting, the applications are enormous – from construction to disaster relief – wherever there’s a need for sustained high-power operations in the field,” Foley said.
Equipmake added that battery-to-battery energy transfer could also be deployed as mobile charging reserves for depot-based fleets or as electric equivalents of fuel bowsers, offering continuous 24-hour operation in remote industrial work sites.
