Trucks
Trucks
For many truck owners, range anxiety remains a barrier to going electric. But is the industry being too range-centric?
Various recent studies and surveys show that, for fleet operators and drivers, range anxiety is one of their biggest concerns about electric trucks. Yet 70% of heavy-duty trucks in Europe actually travel less than 500 km per day, which suggests they could be replaced with electric. So, is the transport industry too fixated on range?
As an industry, we’re coming from a tradition where vehicles can hold up to 1500 liters of fuel and petrol stations are everywhere, so refueling has traditionally never been an issue. When we make this transition to battery-electric trucks, suddenly you have less energy on board and that does create uncertainty. After all, logistics are all about good planning, and having to charge electric trucks is one extra parameter you need to plan for.
Professor Patrick Plötz, from the Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research ISI in Karlsruhe, Germany, has spent over a decade researching the electrification of transportation. He believes that today’s electric trucks can already meet many of our transportation needs. For example, recent studies show that 60% of trucks in Germany could be replaced with an electric truck operating on just one overnight charge, for example at the home depot.
“The demand for longer ranges is largely psychological,” says Patrick Plötz. “For decades, we have been used to driving 1000 km on a single tank, so 400–500 km feels completely insufficient. But in fact, this can already meet much of the industry’s needs in terms of range.”
As public charging infrastructure continues to improve, and it becomes easier for electric trucks to charge during their shift, they will be able to cover increasingly longer distances in excess of their range.
“Even in long haul, where you might drive 1000 km per day, you never drive more than 400 km without stopping. This is because after four and a half hours, by law the driver has to rest for 45 minutes. So, if you can charge during that break, then a 400 km range electric truck could cover 1000 km in a day.”
Professor Patrick Plötz has spent over a decade researching the electrification of transportation
The demand for longer ranges is largely psychological. For decades we have been used to driving 1000 km on a single tank, so 400–500 km feels completely insufficient.
By being so fixated on range, and insisting on ranges you don’t actually need, you risk delaying the transition to electric and missing out on all the other benefits of electromobility such as low fuel costs and zero CO2 emissions.
Another risk is to over-specify your electric truck, adding to your total cost of ownership. Longer ranges mean larger batteries, which not only cost more but also mean less payload.
Instead, the guiding principle should be finding the right truck for the right application. Look at the routes that you drive. What distances do you cover? What is your payload? Where do you stop? Are there opportunities to charge? By doing an electric range simulation and route analysis, you could find the perfect vehicle that will enable you to make the transition now.
For help with electric range simulations and finding on-the-road charging solutions, you can contact your nearest Volvo Trucks dealer.
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