The electrification of Great Britain’s medium and heavy-duty truck fleet can happen faster than many expect – bringing huge opportunities for investment, cost saving and carbon-cutting.  

Recent ERM analysis of truck total cost of ownership (TCO), operational patterns and infrastructure needs finds that rapidly improving economics, combined with Great Britain’s geography, mean that electrification of GB’s trucks is not only feasible in the short term, but increasingly cost effective. Here’s why: 

  • Around half of GB’s trucks can electrify using only depot recharging, allowing them to decarbonise now while discussions around public refuelling continue. While public charging is needed for the most long-distance trucking operations, around half of GB’s trucks can switch to battery electric with models available to order today and with no reliance on any charging outside of their home depot. 
  • Long vehicle lifetimes, modest battery sizes and low power infrastructure mean that, for city and regional deliveries, battery electric rigid trucks are already cost competitive with diesel equivalents on a TCO basis. For these operations, large fuel cost savings of battery electric vehicles (BEV) operation are sufficient to offset the increased depreciation costs of BEVs compared to diesel vehicles today. 
  • Battery electric trucks entering series production in 2024 will have sufficient range, recharging time and payload for most long-distance trucking operations performed by the heaviest articulated trucks. Cost parity with diesel is expected to follow by 2030.   

Read here to find out more about why electrification of Great Britain’s truck fleet can happen at pace from today – and how ERM is helping clients capitalise on the opportunity this brings.

Download report

Contacts

Celine.Cluzel@erm.com
Richard.Riley@erm.com
Will.Drake@erm.com