As in most countries, Medium and Heavy Duty Vehicles (MHDV) represent a small share of the global fleet (~4%), but contribute disproportionately to fuel consumption (~36%) and emissions (~73% of on-road NOx emissions). With an increasing focus on zero emission freight globally, model availability has been increasing, with over 800 models globally across zero emission buses, delivery and cargo vans, medium and heavy duty trucks and tractors.
In association with NITI Aayog’s E-FAST Platform, the India ZEV Research Centre at the University of California, Davis, Climate Group and CALSTART’s Global Commercial Vehicle Drive to Zero program (Drive to Zero) launched the High-Level Ambition Group (HLAG) on Zero-Emission Trucks (ZET) in India at the 14th Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM) on July 22, 2023, at Goa. The event was also marked by the momentous announcement of the state of Goa endorsing the Global Memorandum of Understanding on Zero-Emission MHDVs.
Mr. Sudhendu J. Sinha, Advisor, NITI Aayog, highlighted the importance of the transition in MHDV trucks and the positive trajectory in terms of demand. He remarked on the significance of the first-of-its-kind collaboration between the supply and demand side of the Indian trucking segment and congratulated UC Davis, Climate Group and CALSTART on bringing together key stakeholders that will set the momentum for this transition. NITI Aayog’s E-Fast platform recently has provided the demand signals of over 7700 electric trucks to be deployed by 2030 by various fleet and logistics operators in India.
Aditya Ramji, Director, India ZEV Research Centre, UC Davis, while announcing the HLAG said, “While various countries have been working with industry partners to enable zero emission freight, India becomes the first country globally to have all MHDV manufacturers in the country coming together in a historic partnership to achieve a common goal of zero emission freight in India.”
The prospects for electrifying trucking are improving. Global experiences in China, Europe and California are seeing sales of electric trucks, albeit from a small base, driven by government support, technology development and increasing model availability. In the medium duty segment, electrification is expected to have TCO parity with diesel trucks by 2030, and in certain key applications such as closed loop port operations or mining, heavy-duty electric trucks are expected to attain TCO parity in the same time frame.
The session saw participation from major OEMs such as Volvo Group India, Ashok Leyland, Daimler India Commercial Vehicles and Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., as well as new-age startups such as EVage and Omega Seiki Mobility. The industry leaders emphasized the need for collaboration, a clear and stable policy, an ecosystem approach, as well as opportunities for innovation in the trucking industry. They agreed that a combination of regulation and incentives can help accelerate the industry towards zero emission trucking and prioritised three technologies, namely Battery Electric, Hydrogen Fuel Cell and Hydrogen ICE, indicating that technology readiness was not a constraint.
It also brought together charging infrastructure players such as ABB and Siemens along with Mr. Abhijeet Sinha, Director, NHforEV, who highlighted the opportunities for efficient corridor charging and the technology developments for enabling smart charging in trucks.
The High Level Ambition Group will work together to deliver a shared vision for zero emission freight in India, creating among the world’s largest bankable zero emission truck deployment in India, and a work towards a comprehensive policy roadmap for zero emission freight in partnership with government.
