Fast charging network for e-trucks: ‘A long overdue step’

Road Services, 16. October 2024

The German government is planning to set up at least 350 locations with fast-charging points for lorries across Germany in order to convert road freight transport to battery-electric vehicles. We spoke to Jörg Rotthowe, our Managing Director Road Germany, about this discussion and asked him for his opinion on the role of electric and other alternative drive systems. 

Mr Rotthowe, what do you think of the federal government's plans to set up a fast-charging network for lorries? 

Jörg Rotthowe: This is a long overdue step! Efficient road haulage needs a nationwide supply of charging technology that is especially suitable for heavy goods vehicles and can be made easily accessible to drivers. Just as we have a comprehensive petrol station network today, we also need a corresponding charging infrastructure. 

 

How many electric lorries does the Geis Group currently have in its fleet and are there plans to increase this number further? 

We currently have 14 electric vehicles in our fleet - from Sprinters to articulated lorries. We plan to double this number in the coming year. We also have clear growth targets for the following years, provided that the infrastructure measures to set up the lorry fast-charging network take effect on time.  

 

In which areas do you consider the use of electric lorries to be particularly useful? 
Electric lorries make sense wherever a suitable charging infrastructure is available and high productivity can be achieved. High mileages make their use more climate-friendly and economical. 

 

What is the current financial and practical cost of purchasing an electric lorry? 

At present, the acquisition costs for an electric lorry are around three to four times higher than for a conventional diesel lorry, depending on the technical equipment. In my opinion, these high costs result less from technical reasons and more from issues of production efficiency and the current sales volume. Added to this are infrastructural adjustments, which can also be cost-intensive. 

 

What needs to happen to make the purchase of electric lorries worthwhile in the future? 
In the long term, the total costs of using a climate-neutral lorry must be the same or cheaper than for conventional diesel lorries - taking into account all follow-up costs such as climate damage. If these conditions are met, the switch to climate-neutral drives will be worthwhile both ecologically and economically. 

 

Which alternative drive systems is the Geis Group currently focussing on and which do you think have the best future prospects? 
In the short term, we are focussing on HVO, a climate-friendly diesel substitute made from biological residual and waste materials. This year, we have already ordered six million litres of HVO for our fleet. The advantage is that HVO can be used immediately with existing drive technology. In the long term, we see a technology mix of HVO diesel, electric drives, bio-LNG and hydrogen as the way forward. Each type of drive has specific advantages depending on the area of application and the available infrastructure. 

 

What role do you think electric drives could play in the lorry sector in the future? 
The role of electric drives depends heavily on the further technical development of batteries and the availability of the necessary raw materials under fair conditions. Equally crucial is our ability to establish a comprehensive charging infrastructure at European level, including a climate-neutral power supply. The efficiency of e-truck drives is unrivalled today, which makes it worth investing heavily in creating the necessary framework conditions. 

 

Thank you very much for the interview!