Electric trucks on a charge in the USA
Research by US energy consultancy Wood Mackenzie suggests that the number of electric trucks on American roads is set to rise from 2,000 at the end of last year to 54,000 by 2025.
Analyst Kelly McCoy suggests that the electrification of the transportation sector has been held back by a lack of governmental and financial support when compared to the passenger car and public transit sectors.
“Medium- and heavy-duty vehicles (MDV/HDV) are the second largest contributor to US transportation emissions, but much of the emissions reduction efforts thus far have centred on new diesel technologies and hybrids rather than pure electrification,” said McCoy.
According to Wood Mackenzie’s latest analysis, the number of MDV and HDV electric charging units connected to the grid are expected to increase exponentially over the next few years. The firm expects that the number of electric truck charging outlets will increase to 48,000 by 2025 – paving the way for the increased number of electric trucks.
Kelly McCoy continued: “The range of most commercially available electric trucks is sufficient for their current applications (<300 miles). Since over 68 per cent of city and regional Class 8 trucks are parked for more than 6 hours each day, many electric trucks may be able to rely on Level 2 chargers.
“Electric trucks with larger batteries or shorter dwell times will likely require DCFCs to satisfy their charging needs.
“Freight and cargo facilities were not designed to accommodate EV chargers. Chargers can be installed at truck parking spaces like how public chargers are sited today. However, trucks also spend significant amounts of time at loading docks and these tight spaces do not have room for a charger. Spaces like this will likely have to be redesigned to accommodate chargers.
“Finally, to minimise costs associated with installation, EV chargers should be sited near the transformer and load panel. Chargers located in parking lots may require extra conduit and trenching expenses,” she added.
