The transport sector can reduce its CO2 emissions mainly by relying on trucks with an electric motor and a battery. Alternative drives perform significantly worse in comparison, even if emissions during production are taken into account. This is the result of a study by the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT). The independent organisation advises governments on environmental issues in the transport sector.
Only one other drive concept is the same as electric trucks in terms of CO2 reduction: vehicles with fuel cells would also greatly minimize greenhouse gas emissions, but only if the necessary hydrogen comes exclusively from renewable sources, according to a press release from the organization. So far, however, only vanishingly small amounts of hydrogen have been produced sustainably worldwide, the largest proportion comes from the conversion of fossil natural gas. The balance of trucks powered by hydrogen from fossil sources is only slightly better than that of a conventional diesel truck.
The experts compared current drive concepts with each other and also calculated the emissions incurred in the manufacture of the vehicle. Over the entire lifespan of a battery-electric 40-ton saddle train, which will be put into operation in 2021, e-trucks cause at least 63 percent fewer emissions than diesel trucks. This value arises if you use the current power grid of the European Union. If only renewable electricity is used, the emissions even drop by 84 percent.
Felipe Rodriguez's team of experts sees the balance of natural gas or biogas vehicles, such as those used in public city bus transport, as particularly unfavorable. According to the study, the life cycle analyses would result in a reduction of 4 to 18 percent. However, if the short-term effects on the climate are taken into account, their greenhouse gas emissions would even increase compared to diesel. This is due to the role of methane. It outgasses when natural gas is used and has a strong, albeit not long-lasting, climate impact.
With trucks with their high driving performance, "the problem is not the factory, but the road," says ICCT fuel expert Nikita Pavlenko, who participated in the current study, in the press release. With an electric motor and battery, a truck is more energy-efficient on the road than with any other technology studied, so it can also compensate for higher emissions during its production.
Trucks and buses only make up two percent of the vehicles, but cause a quarter of emissions in the traffic sector. This shows that the CO2 reduction goals, as decided as part of the Paris climate agreement, can only be achieved if the greenhouse gas balance of this fleet can also be significantly improved.
