Major van fleets lobby European Commission over eLCVs

The powerful group of operators represent several of Europe’s largest LCV fleets operators, including DHL Express, Securitas, Schindler, ISS Facility Services, and Vestas Wind Systems, responsible for running tens of thousands of LCVs.

They form part of the Commercial Fleets Advisory Board (CFAB), which also includes senior executives from vehicle manufacturers, leasing companies, telematics firms, and energy suppliers.

Working together, the CFAB presented the Position Paper to Zlatko Kregar, EC Policy Officer, DG Mobility and Transport, at the Commercial Vehicles Summit in Brussels.

“The list of topics you have explored touches on many of our actions,” he said. “We hear you, we understand the complexity of the market, and we understand the complexity of various styles of interventions and their consequences.”

Kregar added that the Commission is working towards a legal instrument to Guide eLCV adoption, and that it will conduct an in-depth impact assessment to analyse how it can achieve its goals without impacting the competitiveness of fleet operators or the wider automotive industry.

“We are looking how to support the transition in the best way possible,” he said, adding that the Position Paper will be one of the inputs to this process, alongside ongoing dialogue with the CFAB.

The paper calls on European and national policymakers to provide specific support in order to develop the electrification of Europe’s LCVs.

“There is a clear demand for more clarity on rules and regulations to electrify fleets, but there’s also a need for more supply of eLCV’s and charging infrastructure”, said Steven Schoefs, head of strategic relations, Nexus Communications.

A demand for consistency
The CFAB fleets are wholeheartedly committed to electrifying their LCVs, but say they still encounter practical challenges related to supply, charging infrastructure, and cost when attempting to transition to battery power. These obstacles are even more acute for SMEs that lack the buying power and scale of major fleets, but face similar decarbonisation pressures.

Among their requirements, the fleets want to see vehicle manufacturers develop a broader choice of electric LCVs (eLCVs) that are capable of fulfilling different duty cycles. The smaller LCV segments are particularly weak in terms of vehicles with adequate range and rapid charging capabilities, according to the fleet operators.

“It is therefore essential that these vehicles have an autonomy [range] of 400-500 kilometres – especially so small and mid-sized LCV models,” says the Position Paper. It calls on policy makers to offer support to OEMs to help aid the development of these vehicles.

In the heavier LCV category, the Policy Paper calls for a consistent, EU-wide application of the driving licence derogation that allows drivers with a B licence to drive a 4.25-tonne electric van (rather than the standard 3.5-tonne limit for diesel vans). Different approaches to this issue by Member States have complicated the adoption of these large eLCVs.

Fleet operators also require a substantial improvement in charging infrastructure to accelerate their eLCV adoption. Securing grid capacity for depot charging is costly and problematic, they report, while public charging costs are: “not transparent, not predictable and affordable enough.” The Position Paper also calls for reduced energy costs for businesses that invest in sustainable solutions like eLCVs.

Building a positive business case for electrification has been further undermined by the changing pattern of grants and subsidies that underpin or destroy the total cost of ownership of eLCVs, which cost at least 10 to 15% more than their diesel equivalents.

“Incentives and subsidies for zero-emission and battery-electric vehicles still required to support an economic and competitive business case,” says the Position Paper. “Unfortunately, incentives and subsidies have lately been reduced across several European markets, including Germany, the Netherlands, Italy, and Belgium.”

Without all of these changes to facilitate the transition to eLCVs, any mandatory fleet eLCV purchase targets, suggested by the Clean Corporate Fleets proposal, are bound to fail, says the Position Paper.

“Without sufficient enabling infrastructure such as grid infrastructure and capacity, operators would not be able to use electric vehicles, and as such would present a threat to transport operator’s competitiveness, especially for SMEs,” it says.

The industry members of the CFAB are Shell Fleet Solutions, Ayvens, Arval, Sixt, Athlon, Webfleet Solutions, Geotab, ChargePoint, ConnectedCars, Targa Telematics, Sortimo, Renault, and Kia.