Taiwan unveils first domestically produced electric tractor

台灣推出首款國產電動拖拉機

Government agencies collaborate to develop electric farm equipment to achieve low-carbon goals


TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan’s first domestically produced electric tractor was unveiled on Tuesday with the support of the Ministry of Agriculture, the Industrial Technology Research Institute, and the Kaohsiung District Agricultural Improvement Station.

The tractor was built from scratch, demonstrating innovative technology across multiple platforms. Technology was transferred to Kulin Technology, a major domestic agricultural machinery company, helping the industry move toward a low-carbon future, per UDN.

Traditional tractors are powered by diesel combustion engines, allowing farmers to plow wet and dry fields. As the most important farm machinery in Taiwan, electrified tractors became a key item in the government’s net-zero carbon reduction policy.

The new electric tractor integrates a domestically made motor, battery, and components. The project took three years from concept to design, machine manufacturing and testing, and final field verification. Along the way, key technologies related to electric tractors were mastered and improved to create an efficient and affordable electric tractor.

Lee Shih-chi (李士畦), a department manager at ITRI, said building electric tractors was not as simple as replacing traditional combustion engines with electric motors and replacing diesel with batteries. It was a major project that required restructuring the chassis, power system, control, and safety.

Lee said electric tractor use can also save farmers money, as the cost of operating a traditional tractor for 250 minutes requires about NT$150 (US$ 4.95), while an electric tractor operated over a similar period only consumes 19 kWh of electricity, which costs less than NT$100, saving nearly 35% in operating costs. Electric tractors can also engage in soil-tilling operations for more than four hours on a single charge.

Electric tractors can also become fully charged in three hours using current charging systems. Furthermore, advantages such as silent operations and high maneuverability, as well as less maintenance, make it competitive compared to traditional diesel tractors.

Lee said that labor shortages and an aging workforce make it necessary to automate or upgrade farm implements, moving toward unmanned operations. The first step is electrifying farm machinery and then making it intelligent.

This trend plays to Taiwan's strengths, as core control chips, communications technology, and integration of peripheral components are all part of a domestic supply chain. If Taiwan can develop high-quality small and medium-sized intelligent electric agricultural machinery, it could develop lucrative overseas markets for these products.

Peng Wen-yang (彭文陽), deputy director at ITRI, said that the tractor prototype adopts a distributed electric power design with multiple functions, making it suitable for future unmanned operation.

ITRI’s “2035 Technology Strategy Roadmap” supports the development of intelligent agricultural robots to help Taiwan's agriculture move towards green sustainability and low-carbon precision production goals.