2022 will go down in history as the year the United States geared up to usurp Europe's global leadership in commercial vehicle technology. Their success in the end is entirely up to us.
Joe Biden's landmark climate bill, the Inflation Control Act (IRA), has been a hot topic. And its strong support for mined American batteries and electric vehicles has the city of Brussels concerned.
A little-known fact is that the U.S. IRA also includes a $40,000 credit for heavy-duty electric trucks. This makes it significantly more comparable in cost to diesel rigs. Some analysts predict that by 2030, more than 60% of new U.S. truck sales will be electric trucks. But even more than tax credits, it's the IRA's fiscal stimulus for the entire supply chain, from green energy to battery production, that makes electric trucks deadly. weapon.
Even more than tax credits, what makes the IRA a weapon is its fiscal stimulus to the entire supply chain, from green energy to battery production.
President Biden struck again at COP27. The United States has committed in a Global Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to sell only zero-emission trucks starting in 2040. California is even considering bringing that forward to 2036. The IRA and the memorandum together form a license to kill. This is clearly the way forward and there are huge tax credits available to homegrown supply chains to scale up production in the coming years.
Unless Europe introduces its own ambitious truck package, it will be left behind. The world's leading truck maker risks following in the footsteps of its automakers as it struggles to keep up with competition from China and California.
The European Commission is currently drafting legislation that will allow us to take back control: a CO2 standard for heavy vehicles. The bill, expected in January, is rumored to include a Europe-specific date by which only zero-emission trucks can be sold, similar to cars and vans. Cars and trucks share much of their supply chain. If you're going to electrify your cars, it's crazy to try to keep truck engines alive.
Unless Europe introduces its own ambitious truck package, it will be left behind.
In the world of trucking, total cost of ownership (TCO) is paramount. Research organization TNO estimates that by 2035, more than 99% of electric freight trucks will outperform diesel vehicles in terms of cost without losing an inch of operational capacity.
The fact that Scania has already announced that it will go fully electric from 2040 and Daimler has announced that it will be completely emissions-free from 2039 confirms that this is possible.
If truck pollution continues to rise, no EU member state will be able to meet the new 2030 climate change targets. Trucks already account for more than a quarter of the EU's road transport emissions, although they only make up 2% of vehicles on the road. That's why 10 EU capitals want 100% zero-emission sales targets. Companies also want to relocate. A coalition of 44 companies, including PepsiCo, Unilever and Maersk, just called for higher short-term targets.
The 2030 CO2 goal for today's trucks was set at a 30% reduction in emissions at a time when electric trucks were considered impossible and fuel economy was the coolest in town.
Raising this target to 65% of emissions reductions is the innovative measure we need
Raising this target to 65% of emissions reductions is the game changer needed to begin the transition and achieve the required emissions reductions and industrial scale.
We cannot afford to delay expanding our ambitions until 2035 or 2040. The US IRA is here and now challenging his EU industrial leadership in commercial vehicles. Some battery and critical mineral investments in the EU are already at risk of moving to the US Tesla Semiconductor will be launched in the US, not Europe. Europe has long been a world leader in truck technology and innovation. Today, global competition threatens to take that lead away from us. Strong truck CO2 targets and 100% zero emissions targets by 2035, reinforced by strong industrial policies for metal processing and green battery manufacturing in Europe, will ensure European leadership in the future. , will provide truckers with the clean, low-cost rigs they need. To deliver products.
