The former chief operating officer for Volvo Trucks North and South America, Patrick Collignon, announced Wednesday that he has launched Trova Commercial Vehicles (TrovaCV), located in Pulaski County’s Fairlawn area.

The company will focus on the engineering, design and production of fully electric commercial vehicles, with a goal to achieve cost-effective mass production.

“This is an exciting time as the electric commercial vehicle market is being reshaped,” Collignon said in a statement. “While technology and innovation have made it possible to convert fuel-powered commercial vehicles into electric vehicles, we haven’t seen a production model capable of producing the required volume of fully electric commercial vehicles to meet the demand.”

With more than 30 years of experience in the commercial vehicle industry, Collignon has worked with both the Volvo Group and General Motors. He was most recently the senior vice president of operations for the Americas for Volvo Trucks, where he led the initiative to develop and manufacture the new Mack medium duty truck platform.

TrovaCV has received support from the Pulaski County Board of Supervisors, the Economic Development Authority and the Virginia Economic Development Partnership (VEDP), according to the company.

As of yet, Pulaski County has not put any direct incentives into the Trova startup, says Jonathan D. Sweet, county administrator of Pulaski County. Trova’s location decision was predicated on the talent pools and “advanced manufacturing heritage in the county,” which has more than 5,000 manufacturing jobs, he says. 

“The county is excited to support Trova’s next steps and will work closely with the company in the future to facilitate access to available resources necessary to progress their industrialization plans,” Sweet says.  “Consistent with all of our industry partners, we will work diligently and creatively to enable and foster their success with the end goal of creating new opportunities for our citizens and a meaningful return on investment for Pulaski County.”

“VEDP helps businesses find the resources they need to make location and expansion successful endeavors, and we are pleased to assist Trova Commercial Vehicles with its launch in Pulaski County,” VEDP President and CEO Stephen Moret said in a statement. “Virginia champions the innovation of entrepreneurs like Patrick Collignon, and we are committed to working with our economic development partners at the state, regional, and local levels to facilitate TrovaCV’s success in the commonwealth.”

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