Next year, truck manufacturers will need to supply 9% of trucks sold in California to be zero-emission. But this is tougher than it sounds:
- Batteries add substantial weight —decreasing payload. Consider an EV Hummer weighs in at 9,000#
- Batteries demand huge recharging infrastructure and potentially long waits — and today, there is no/limited infrastructure
Hydrogen has two competing technologies — no winner yet:
- Fuel cells
- Standard internal combustion engines fed with hydrogen
Hydrogen has no/limited infrastructure and no standard for things like pressure and nozzle size (Europe plans to have hydrogen every 200 km by 2031).-1.png)
My take— don’t count out diesel. It will be around for a long time. California will see battery applications in smaller local delivery straight trucks — and maybe more yard-jockeys. Class 8 long-haul loads need the power of fossil fuel for now.