Welcoming the move, that increases the grant for electric HGVs to £120,000 per vehicle, Lamech Solomon, Head of Decarbonisation Policy at business group Logistics UK suggested the grant is “fundamental to the continued uptake of electric HGVs” but called for greater long-term certainty: “With long procurement cycles, the sector needs certainty that these new rates will be maintained far beyond March 2026.”
The Government also announced a consultation regarding the regulatory roadmap to phase out sales of new, non-zero emission HGVs.
Commercial and operational barriers
With a recent Logistics UK survey highlighting industry concerns over the level of government funding, Lamech suggested that this, along with lack of charging infrastructure, continues to hinder uptake.
Survey respondents pointed to concerns over charging infrastructure as a significant barrier to fleet electrification with 85% expressing low confidence in availability and more than 80% reporting they are unable to install chargers with sufficient capacity at their operating sites.
Lamech says the industry is “committed to decarbonisation” but called for these factors to be considered in the consultation. As government looks to create “a viable pathway to decarbonisation that includes all viable technology routes”, he suggests greater support is needed “to make this transition a realistic possibility”.
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