No lightning progress on the UK’s electric fleets

You may well have seen our blog about six months ago talking about how close we are to a future of all electric HGVs. At the time, we mentioned that more than 95% of HGVs were diesel powered. About six months down the line, not much has changed on a national level.

While the growth of electric cars is still surging, the electric HGV network hasn’t had nearly the same level of support – which is especially significant considering that the sale of diesel HGVs is supposed to be phased out by 2040. The lack of significant forward progress means that for the time being, most commercial fleets across the UK are overwhelmingly likely to be fuelled using diesel – so it’s always worth making sure yours is properly protected with TankSafe Optimum.

So – where are things at now?

A (charging) point of contention

As we’ve touched on above, electric car takeup across the UK is still soaring, with about 1.1 million fully battery-powered cars on British roads, powered by about 63,000 charging points in 33,000 locations. Now, before we go any further, it’s worth pointing out that even at that scale, the electric car network is still insufficient at the moment, with demand for charging stations still outstripping supply. (That’s given rise to what’s called “range anxiety”, but more on that in a moment.)

When it comes to HGVs though, the situation is even more baffling – the Road Haulage Association (RHA) says there’s just a single electric HGV charging station in the entire UK. (In case you’re wondering, it’s a service station in Rivington, about halfway between Manchester and Preston.)

Partially due to this – or because of it – the haulage industry still has nowhere near the level of electric vehicles enjoyed by the population at large, with just 300 electric HGVs registered out of more than half a million lorries in the UK. That’s a long way from where the Department of Transport wants us to be as a nation – and in the eyes of many, it’s a long way from where we need to be.

The problem of range

As we touched upon in our previous piece, the issue of range is one of the single biggest obstacles to the widespread take-up of HGVs. In this context, range is how far a vehicle is able to travel on a single battery charge. It’s not uncommon for EV drivers to experience “range anxiety” – in other words, worries about whether or not their vehicle has enough charge to reach their destination, or the next charging station.

That can be a major inconvenience for private drivers – but it can be an absolute catastrophe in a commercial haulage setting. A hypothetical electric HGV running out of charge could mean that key delivery deadlines get missed for example, which could have immediate knock-on effects for the wider supply chain. Complicating the issue is the fact that the size and weight of HGVs places extra pressure on their batteries, limiting their range even further – most can only go a maximum of 200 miles.

It's therefore probably not too surprising that the RHA says 70% of British electric HGVs return to their depots for recharging overnight, and that the majority are used for local deliveries within a 50-mile to 80-mile radius.

Now, the difficult thing is that the range problem isn’t something we can build our way out of in the short term, which means that the most effective solution is probably going to be to install more charging points. Indeed, some trucking companies may need substations installed to cope with the energy consumption.

The government isn’t blind to the problem – it’s already backing private companies to roll out 200 chargers capable of the kind of power that trucks need to charge (which is significantly more than regular commuter vehicles). The RHA are still applying pressure to the Department for Transport, and there are growing calls from the industry for further clarification too. There’s no sign of them letting up anytime soon – so we’ll have to see how the rest of the year goes.

In the meantime though, electrifying entire fleets remains a costly endeavour. And even if you’ve got the will and the resources to do it, the lack of major charging infrastructure remains a major obstacle for the time being. So in short, it looks like your fleet will be using diesel for a little while longer – and that’s exactly where we can help here at TankSafe.

Our TankSafe Optimum is an antisiphon device which we’ve specifically designed to provide 100% protection, so you can have peace of mind against fuel spills, overfilling, and skimming. You can find out more on its dedicated page on our website, or find out answers to some of the most common questions over on our FAQs page. If you’ve still got queries, our experts will be happy to resolve them - fee free to give us a quick call on 01253 400 401, and we’ll be happy to help however we can!