‘Government must unlock HGV electrification to meet 2040 diesel ban’

EV charging industry association ChargeUK publishes plan to break the deadlock on decarbonising the UK freight sector

The government must take steps in collaboration with industry to address the ‘chicken and egg’ dilemma currently holding up heavy goods vehicle (HGV) electrification, the EV charging sector association ChargeUK has said.

HGVs play a critical role in  the UK economy, handling 80% of all goods. While they represent just over 1% of vehicles on the road, they are responsible for 16% of all UK domestic transport emissions.

There are around 1,000 electric HGVs registered in the UK, only 0.2% of the total, and growth remains far behind the trajectory required to meet the government’s committed 2040 cutoff for the sale of new diesel HGVs.

ChargeUK’s new paper, Electrifying Freight: A roadmap for electric HGV charging, outlines the circularity of the challenge with fleets and manufacturers reluctant to transition without the charging infrastructure in place and charge point operators reluctant to invest in building it without vehicles to charge.

The paper recommends taking lessons from the significantly more advanced progress of electrification of passenger vehicles, whilst warning that the challenges facing wider transport decarbonisation are more acute in freight. This is due to the much higher costs of vehicles and greater complexity of infrastructure, in addition to the commercial nature of decision making.

ChargeUK has made three top level recommendations to government:

1. Unlock infrastructure investment, by creating a dedicated HGV infrastructure fund, fast-tracking grid connections for HGV charging sites and including renewable electricity in the Renewable Transport Fuels Obligation.
2. Provide market certainty through regulation, through a clear regulatory framework which guarantees electrification and aligning regulatory and technical approaches with the European market.
3. Close the cost gap for fleets by enabling electricity crediting for depot charging, addressing the high cost of electricity and enhancing upfront cost support to address total cost of ownership.

Jarrod Birch, head of policy and public affairs at ChargeUK, said: “It is understandable that critical logistics providers are unwilling to transition before the business case stacks up. And just as it has done for passenger vehicle electrification, the charging sector is willing to build ahead of demand. However, we must have some certainty that demand will grow with strong commercial and policy signals that the UK is investible for HGV charging.

“We know what has and hasn’t worked for cars so can apply those lessons. A dedicated HGV infrastructure fund and clarity in regulation would be positive steps forwards. Whilst addressing the existing challenges in costs of public charging and speeding up grid connections are more acutely required for freight.

“The UK is facing a steep challenge to meet the 2040 cut-off for sale of diesel HGVs, but the charging sector is committed to working with government and wider industry to drive the exponential increase in electrification which we need.”
Electrifying Freight: a roadmap for electric HGV charging.