Thousands of trucks travel across Europe every day to move goods. Reducing their emissions is one of the major logistical challenges of this decade. Today, the transition relies on two technologies already in progress: battery-electric trucks and hydrogen-powered trucks, which are emerging as the most promising option for long-haul heavy transport.

So far, electric trucks have become established in last-mile logistics and medium-distance routes, with ranges of up to 300 km. But the leap to longer journeys is starting to become a reality:

• Daimler Truck began series production of the eActros 600 —its model designed for heavy interurban transport, with a range of 500 km— at the end of 2024. Amazon has ordered more than 200 units, the largest order it has placed so far for electric vehicles in this category.
• Tesla, on the other hand, promises up to 800 kilometers of range with the Semi, although the model is still in testing and not yet for sale.

Hydrogen is the other major bet for decarbonizing heavy transport, either in the form of fuel cells or as a fuel for adapted combustion engines.

Compared to batteries —which require powerful chargers and longer recharging times— hydrogen offers two major advantages on the road: fast refueling —almost as quick as with diesel vehicles— and ranges between 800 and 1,000 kilometers. Even so, there are significant challenges: producing, storing, and transporting hydrogen remains very expensive. That’s why we’re currently in a pilot phase, using these initiatives to learn for a future large-scale rollout:

• BMW Group is already testing this technology on real routes within its logistics network in Germany. The pilot program is part of the European project H2Haul, with participation from Iveco, DHL, and TEAL Mobility. In H2Haul, hydrogen is used in fuel cells: it is converted into electricity on board to power an electric motor. Only water vapor is emitted.
• In addition to participating in H2Haul, DHL is part of the HyCET consortium, led by BMW Group, which promotes a different route: trucks with combustion engines powered by hydrogen. This is an easier short-term solution to adopt, since it is based on technology similar to diesel engines but without CO₂ emissions.

For the first time, there are real alternatives to diesel in high-capacity transport. In the coming years, we will see which technologies best suit each type of route and truly reduce emissions on the road.