Electric trucks deliver a lower total cost of ownership (TCO) than their diesel equivalents in six of the EU’s nine biggest markets, new analysis from Transport & Environment (T&E) has found.
According to T&E, in the Netherlands and Germany, savings of up to €100,000 and €85,000, respectively, can be achieved over a five-year period, with electric trucks reaching payback after around two years.
If diesel prices remain elevated, however, the potential five-year savings increase to €123,000 in the Netherlands and €106,000 in Germany.
The six markets in which electric trucks deliver a lower TCO account for 46% of all new heavy trucks sold in the EU.
‘On the front line’
“Europe’s truckers are on the front line of the diesel crisis,” commented Stef Cornelis, director of freight and fleets at T&E. “There has never been a better time to switch from diesel to electric, but we need truckmakers and governments to support them in doing so.
“Rather than asking for further delay the EU’s electrification targets, truckmakers should stick to Europe’s 2030 CO2 goals. Governments can play their part by exempting e-trucks from road tolls while accelerating charging infrastructure and grid connections. Reintroducing fuel rebates is the wrong answer to this crisis and will only prolong the transport sector’s dependency on cripplingly expensive diesel.”
By 2030, electric trucks could be cheaper to operate than diesel in all nine countries included in its analysis, T&E noted, even despite the phasing out of vehicle purchase subsidies.
Competitive market
To maintain a competitive TCO for electric trucks, T&E called for existing EU heavy-duty vehicle CO₂ standards to remain in place, including the 43% emissions reduction target for 2030.
In addition, it identified tolling and charging infrastructure as two factors affecting the viability of electric trucks, calling on Italy, France, Spain and Poland to implement the Eurovignette Directive, which would see zero-emission trucks exempt from tolling charges until 2031, followed by a 50–75% exemption afterwards.
“Europe’s truckmakers should be fully focused on increasing the scale of production of e-trucks to lower their up-front prices, rather than continuing their efforts to change the regulations,” Cornelis added.
“Every investor in the e-truck’s ecosystem needs stable policy, not going back and forth. Maintaining the CO2 standards will be critical for Europe’s truck industry to compete with Chinese e-trucks and the Tesla Semi and avoid a repeat of what we saw in the auto industry.” Read more here.
