A leading EV trade body is urging the government to work closely with the freight sector to address the ‘chicken and egg’ dilemma holding up HGV electrification in the UK.
ChargeUK, the EV charging sector association, has published a new paper called Electrifying Freight: A roadmap for electric HGV charging – which outlines the circularity of the challenge facing fleets and the charging network.
Fleets and manufacturers are reluctant to transition without the charging infrastructure in place, while charge point operators are reluctant to invest in expanding the network without vehicles to charge.
Currently there are around 1,000 electric HGVs registered in the UK, only around 0.2% of the UK’s total HGV fleet, and growth remains far behind the trajectory required to meet the Government’s 2040 cut-off for the sale of new diesel HGVs.
“It is understandable that critical logistics providers are unwilling to transition before the business case stacks up”, said Jarrod Birch, head of policy and public affairs at ChargeUK.
“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,” said Birch.
ChargeUK has made three recommendations that it would like to see the government consider:
1. Unlocking infrastructure investment
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
Have a clear regulatory framework which guarantees electrification in alignment with the European market.
3. Reduce the cost gap for fleets
Enable electricity crediting for depot charging, address the high cost of electricity and enhancing upfront cost support.
