The German government has approved the construction of a fast-charging network dedicated to heavy electric trucks. The project, dubbed “Power to the Road”, will see the installation of 350 fast-chargers at selected service stations and rest areas, providing charging cover for 95% of Germany’s highway system.
The rapid electrification of commercial vehicles is exposing a gap in the charging ecosystem: most charging stations are designed to accommodate car-sized EVs, not eLCVs, let alone electrified heavy trucks.
- At present, 71% of freight in Germany is transported over the road. Trucks, almost exclusively diesel-powered, make up one third of the country’s total transport emissions.
- Thanks to cleaner engines, CO2 emissions from trucks have declined by 8.4% per km since 1995. However, due to increased mileage, overall CO2 emissions from trucks have gone up by 21%.
- According to Germany’s road traffic authority KBA, just 2.1% of the country’s commercial vehicles are powered by electricity.
Large electric trucks are relatively new on the market, and can cost more than twice as much as their diesel equivalents. However, the cost per km is lower for electric trucks – and they are exempt from Germany’s road tolls. Experts predict strong growth in electric truck sales.
To accelerate that trend, the German ministries of Transport and Economics are now collaborating with network operators and with BDEW, the sectoral association for the German energy industry, to build a network of truck fast-chargers. Tenders for some 130 locations will take place in the late summer.
- “Charging in the megawatt range directly on the highway will become standard”, said Volker Wissing, Germany’s Transport minister.
- “The aim of the network is also to allow trucks to run on green electricity only”, added Robert Habeck, Germany’s Economics minister.
“Power to the Road” is a cornerstone of Germany’s strategy to decarbonize its transport sector by 2045. As an intermediary goal, Germany wants a third of its heavy road haulage to run on electricity, or on fuels produced using electricity (such as synthetic methane or hydrogen) by 2030.
The project aligns with the EU’s overall efforts to reduce emissions from haulage. Last year, the EU mandated the installation of fast chargers every 60 km along motorways throughout the EU by the end of 2025. Each station should have a total output of 400 kW for cars and LCVs, and 600 kW for heavy-duty vehicles.
Additionally, Germany is working to roll out a network of 9,000 High Power Chargers (HPCs) for EVs and eLCVs, at a cost of €1.9 billion. This network is expected to be operational by 2026.
The truck fast-charging network will go some way towards meeting the EU’s requirement to provide fast-charging infrastructure for battery-electric trucks every 60 to 100 km along key highways. This is part of the EU’s aim to have one million public chargers by 2025 and three million by 2030, to support the “Fit for 55” goal of reducing emissions across the EU by at least 55% by 2030.
Image: Pxhere, public domain