NORTH AMERICA REPORT
Energy and the environment are the issues that will redefine the trucking industry over the next decade. That’s what Chris Spear, president and CEO of the American Trucking Associations, told a room full of industry experts in November at the annual Cummins-Meritor and Pressure Systems International fleet technology event held in San Antonio, Texas.
But he said the timeline the industry has placed on the adoption of battery electric vehicles (BEV) and to achieve zero emissions are “completely unachievable.”
“It takes time. We’re not going to get there starting in 2030. We’re not going to meet that by 2035. It ain’t gonna happen,” Spear said, “and when it fails, it’s not only going to be embarrassing, it’s going to cost a lot of people their jobs. To me, that’s just unacceptable.”
According to the American Transportation Research Institute, it would take 40% more capacity on the grid to charge every car and truck currently on the road. But our mineral sources – China and the Congo – are not reliable long term, and it would take 10 years of domestic mining for those minerals to reach market, Spear said.
BEV needs to start with vans and step vans, then box trucks, then regional haul/return-to-base operations before long haul can be considered, said Mike Roeth, Executive Director of the North American Council for Freight Efficiency (NACFE).
Spear said the common-sense sequence is starting with vehicles like garbage trucks and school buses and building the infrastructure and power grid around that before expanding.
BEV doesn’t make sense for much of the industry right now, not only because of operational parity but also because of cost parity, Spear said. BEVs cost three to four times more than a brand-new diesel truck.
Here is a link to this article: Source: CCJ Alternative Power
PSR Analysis. The article does a good job of laying out the on-going barriers to adoption for the transition to zero-emission medium and heavy commercial vehicles. Charging infrastructure and mineral sourcing are likely the most challenging barriers to adoption during the transition phase.
Not only having the right type of charging infrastructure at the right locations, but also ensuring the power grid is up to the task is crucial to the success of implementing this transition. Domestic mineral sourcing will be a significant challenge to overcome during the mid to longer term. The relatively short timelines to achieve high adoption rates for zero-emission vehicles will certainly be “challenging.” PSR
Chris Fisher is Senior Commercial Vehicle Analyst at Power Systems Research
