On a bumpy road to net zero, trucks shift gear to reduce emissions

On a bumpy road to net zero, trucks shift gear to reduce emissions

Subject : Environment

Section: Climate change

Context:

• Diesel trucks that are the core of India’s domestic freight movement also contribute to the transport sector’s emissions.

Details:

• The move to zero-emission trucks could lead the way as India pushes to meet its 2070 net-zero targets.
• High upfront costs, clarity on charging infrastructure and effective communication with fleet owners in the primarily unorganized trucking sector are some of the challenges to overcome in the transitioning sector.

Emissions from truck transport:

• India is poised to become the world’s second-largest trucking market in the next decade.
• A single truck is projected to emit a total of 1,300 tonnes of CO2 over its operational lifespan.
• India has approximately four million trucks (as of 2022).
• These trucks shoulder 70% of India’s freight demand, transporting over 4.6 billion tonnes annually.
• Despite comprising just 2% of the total vehicles on Indian roads, these freight trucks collectively contribute to 45% of the transport sector’s emissions.
  • Almost all the emissions from the transportation sector — 90% — is from road transport, with trucks accounting for approximately 50% of these emissions.
• A projected fleet of 17 million trucks is envisioned to be on Indian roads by 2050.

Zero Emission Trucks as a Solution:

• Enhancing the efficiency of Internal Combustion Engine (ICE).
• Zero Emission Vehicles Emerging Markets Initiative (ZEV-EMI) and Indian government’s E-FAST (Electric Freight Accelerator for Sustainable Transport) initiative.
  • The zero emission trucks or Electric trucks, though currently at the concept stage, these trucks can help achieve India’s target of achieving Net Zero emission by 2070.
  • ZETs can lead to 2.8-3.8 gigatonnes of cumulative CO2 savings through 2050, which is equal to or greater than India’s entire economy-wide annual GHG emissions today.

• During the G20 Energy Ministers’ meeting, the World Economic Forum announced the launch of India’s pioneering zero-emission road freight cluster initiative.
  • In partnership with the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways and supported by NITI Aayog’s e-FAST program, this initiative aims to deploy 550 ZETs within the next 18-24 months, along select road corridors in Gujarat and Maharashtra.
• Tata Motors, dominating nearly 50% of India’s truck sales market, has committed, in its latest annual report, to achieving net-zero emissions for its commercial vehicles by 2045.

Challenges include:

• India’s truck market is largely unorganized sector.
• High upfront cost
• Lack of financial incentives
  • Currently, trucks are not included in any demand incentive schemes, whether it’s the Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles (FAME) subsidy— a scheme that provides incentives to buyers of electric vehicles — or state-level EV policies.
• Unavailability of high-capacity charging infrastructure.

International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT):

• The International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) is an independent nonprofit organization founded in 2001 to provide first-rate, unbiased research and technical and scientific analysis to environmental regulators.
• Together, these efforts are projected to result in billions of tons of carbon dioxide reductions and prevent thousands of premature deaths over the next decade and beyond.

E-FAST initiative:

• NITI Aayog, in collaboration with World Resources Institute (WRI), India, launched the country’s first national electric freight platform – e-FAST India (Electric Freight Accelerator for Sustainable Transport – India).
• Supported by the World Economic Forum, CALSTART and RMI India, the platform brings different stakeholders together, from across the freight ecosystem.
• The platform aims to raise awareness on freight electrification bolstered by on-ground demonstration pilots and evidence-based research.