Charging Infrastructure for e-trucks:
The truck fast-charging network is not enough

This makes it clear that the fast-charging infrastructure along the highways alone will not support the market ramp-up of electric trucks. Range, network performance and location availability are only part of the equation. The central problem for the logistics sector remains: a lack of planning security. No one can guarantee that a public station will be free, operational or vehicle-compatible.

This inevitably leads to the chicken-and-egg effect. Without a reliable infrastructure, haulage companies will not invest in e-trucks – and without growing fleets, there is no economic incentive to set up more charging points. The planned fast-charging network is intended to break this cycle, but remains a centralized concept for an industry that in reality operates on a decentralized basis.

Future-proof Charging Infrastructure is therefore primarily being created where Logistics actually takes place: at depots, in industrial areas and on private land. For many companies, charging at the depot or directly on site is already the more practical solution.

However, small and medium-sized haulage companies in particular are often unable to make such investments on their own. This is why area partnerships are becoming increasingly important. Everyone contributes what they have: Space, infrastructure, Energy, operations.

A typical model:

• Our Company provides the space.
• An energy supplier installs and operates the charging points.
• Logistics companies receive predictable loading times in return for a usage fee.

The state program TruckCharge@BW in Baden-Württemberg shows how such collaborations can be strengthened in a targeted manner. It promotes planning, construction and grid connections for charging points on company premises and at public locations. Small Our Companies can receive a grant of up to 50 percent of eligible costs. The program thus starts exactly where the ramp-up is decided: in local partnerships between landowners, energy suppliers and logistics companies.

However, such models require not only technical expertise, but also a broader understanding of the project. In addition to traditional stakeholders such as building owners, grid operators and funding agencies, new players such as energy companies, software providers and land owners are also involved. Project coordination here means reconciling very different interests, legal specifications and operational requirements. Access times, safety requirements, area contracts, electricity sales – all of these need to be defined and managed.

The task profile therefore differs significantly from traditional Project Management. Interface competence and moderation between players who have had little contact with each other to date are in demand. In future, this will also include IT management: Software companies are already working on solutions that enable reservable charging points and provide real-time data on availability and capacity utilization – integrated into vehicles and charging stations alike.

The truck fast-charging network is an important step towards climate-friendly Logistics. Ranges of several hundred kilometers have long been a reality for e-trucks. The crucial question is no longer how far the vehicles can travel, but where they can charge reliably. High performance requirements, long downtimes and greater space requirements make planning much more challenging than in the passenger car sector.

If you really want to get e-trucks on the road, you have to think beyond the highway. Instead of waiting for standardized solutions, we need cooperation that combines space, Energy and economy – and Project Management that controls this new complexity. The future of the e-truck does not depend on the plug, but on cooperation.

Author:

Bianca Triebel, Team Leader Charging Infrastructure at THOST Projektmanagement GmbH