The European Union (EU) faces a critical challenge in decarbonising the heavy-duty vehicle (HDV) sector, which is crucial to the economy but also a significant contributor to greenhouse gas emissions. The EU has set ambitious targets for new HDVs under Regulation (EU) 2024/1610, which include reducing CO₂ emissions by 45 % by 2030 and 90 % by 2040 compared to 2019 levels.

A message The European Commission's Joint Research Centre (JRC), prepared for DG CLIMA, analyses the state of technology and identifies research and innovation (R&I) priorities based on feedback from industrial stakeholders. The primary conclusion of the study is that The most important factor for the widespread adoption of zero-emission HDVs (ZE-HDVs) is achieving total cost of ownership (TCO) parity or better results compared to diesel vehicles..

Technological paths and maturity

The study confirms the consensus that Battery electric vehicle (BEV) technology is the primary path to decarbonization, and is perceived as more mature, especially for urban applications. The maturity of BEV technologies is highest for public transport buses and urban distributionFor example, in urban transport, BEV technology is considered mature and essentially market-ready for urban routes.

Hydrogen technologies (FCEVs – fuel cell vehicles and H₂-ICEs – hydrogen internal combustion engine vehicles) are considered basic complementary solution, especially for the most demanding long-haul applications, where BEVs still face operational hurdles. Hydrogen-based technologies and associated refueling infrastructure are being evaluated at earlier stages of development (lower TRL).

In the long-haul freight segment (400+ km/day), all technologies are rated at a lower readiness level. For long-haul BEVs, the key barriers are limited range, charging time, and the lack of a mature high-performance charging infrastructure such as a Megawatt Charging System (MCS). For FCEVs, readiness is limited by the lack of durability of fuel cell systems for HDV applications and the dependence on a large and reliable hydrogen refueling station (HRS) network.

Key TCO factor

While R&I can reduce technology costs, stakeholders highlight the high initial acquisition costs of EVs as a primary barrier. Respondents indicate that the initial costs of EVs are currently between 5 and 30 TEUs higher than conventional vehicles, although optimistic forecasts expect TCO parity by 2030.

Stable and low energy prices are key to ensuring TCO competitiveness. Stakeholders universally agreed that competitive electricity price should be 0.3 EUR/kWh or less. For hydrogen, the competitive price is centered around 5 EUR/kg, although to achieve parity with diesel the price would have to be in the range of 6–8 EUR/kg.

Non-core technology factors critical to market adoption include a stable regulatory framework, mechanisms to close the TCO gap (e.g. carbon tariffs and differentiated road charges), and addressing uncertainty regarding residual value of batteries.

R&I priorities

The findings confirm that future R&I should primarily focus on advances in BEV technologiesStakeholders have established a clear hierarchy of R&I priorities:

1. Battery electric technologies (with a total support of 66 votes). The priority is improving battery performance – increasing energy density, reducing costs and extending service life. This priority also includes the development of megawatt charging systems (MCS) for long routes.
2. Hydrogen solutions (with a total support of 38 votes). The priority is improvement of fuel cell systems, focusing on increasing durability, robustness and reducing costs for HDV applications.
3. Cross-cutting and systemic actionsThis includes implementation of large-scale demonstration projects to validate technologies in real-world conditions, as well as R&I to support a competitive and sustainable European battery value chain.

The analysis also showed that while core vehicle components such as aerodynamics and electric powertrain (e-powertrain) are considered highly mature, R&I is still essential for advancements in next-generation battery technologies (e.g. solid-state) and for improving the efficiency of H₂-ICE. JRi