– Study conducted by French DSO, VINCI Autoroutes, and six European manufacturers found heavy EV roaming charging will require €630 million in infrastructure investment
– Charging heavy goods vehicles alone could consume 3.5TWh/year by 2035, requiring 1.1GW peak power demand
– Recommendations include establishing a shared roadmap, regulatory mechanisms, and incentive measures to encourage private investment in battery-electric heavy goods vehicles and charging infrastructure
A collaborative study between a French DSO, VINCI Autoroutes, and six European manufacturers revealed that heavy electric vehicle (EV) roaming charging will require €630 million in infrastructure investment to meet increasing power demand needs. Enedis, TotalEnergies, VINCI Autoroutes, and manufacturers like Iveco, MAN Truck & Bus France, and others collaborated on the study to assess the electrification of long-distance road freight transport and roaming charging on French roads. The study projected that heavy goods vehicles alone could consume 3.5TWh/year and demand 1.1 GW of power by 2035, necessitating significant infrastructure investments.
In order to meet the projected rise in power demand, the study recommends reinforcing or creating 60 HTB/HTA transformation stations and deploying 10,000 charging points for long breaks and 2,200 for fast charging at various service and rest areas by 2035. However, the deployment of infrastructure may reduce available parking spaces for heavy goods vehicles, potentially leading to land deficits. The study also highlights the interest in pooling connections of charging infrastructures to limit investments on the electricity network.
To address these findings, stakeholders in the sector are recommended to establish planning and a shared roadmap for developments on electricity networks and road infrastructures, regulatory mechanisms to anticipate work requests, and incentive measures to encourage private investment in battery-electric heavy goods vehicles. The study underscores the importance of appropriate infrastructure deployment to achieve decarbonization objectives and the success of electric heavy goods vehicles.