Clean Transport

The Clean Truck Partnership was a voluntary agreement established in 2023 between California's Air Resources Board (CARB) and major truck engine manufacturers. It aimed to align manufacturers with California's advanced clean truck emissions regulations, including commitments to meet stricter emissions standards and promote clean transportation initiatives.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ended its antitrust investigation into the Clean Truck Partnership, which led to the partnership's dismantling. The FTC's action was influenced by conflicts between California's emissions regulations and federal law, including the revocation of EPA waivers that previously allowed California to set its own vehicle emissions standards. This created legal uncertainty and regulatory conflicts, prompting the FTC to intervene and effectively dissolve the partnership.

Greenlane's I-10 EV charging corridor is designed to support medium- and heavy-duty electric trucks by providing a reliable and strategically located charging infrastructure along Interstate 10, connecting Southern California to Phoenix, Arizona. This corridor aims to enable long-haul electric freight operations by offering high-performance charging sites approximately every 60 to 90 miles, facilitating zero-emission freight movement on a major transportation artery.

Windrose's R700 Class 8 electric semi truck has demonstrated the capability to complete nearly 300-mile single-charge trips along the I-10 corridor with a gross combined weight rating of over 74,000 pounds, showing real-world viability for long-haul freight. The truck achieves rapid charging speeds up to 772 kW using dual-gun charging technology at Greenlane's Colton site, which significantly reduces downtime and supports demanding freight operations.

Corporate fleets face several challenges in transitioning to electric vehicles, including the high upfront costs of EVs, the need for extensive charging infrastructure, and operational disruptions due to different working parameters compared to traditional vehicles. Additionally, the lack of maturity in the EV ecosystem for medium- and heavy-duty vehicles complicates the transition.

Electrification is seen as essential for decarbonizing corporate fleets because it offers a primary alternative to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and comply with emerging regulations. Additionally, electrification aligns with corporate sustainability goals and supports the creation of cleaner supply chains, which are increasingly demanded by customers.

Critics argue that the ICCT’s assessment fails to accurately account for hydrogen leakage across the supply chain and uses the 20-year global warming potential (GWP20) instead of the more standard 100-year metric (GWP100), which can significantly understate hydrogen’s climate impact. These oversights may mislead policymakers by presenting hydrogen fuel cell vehicles as more climate-friendly than they truly are, especially when compared to battery electric vehicles, which are currently seen as the more viable solution for decarbonizing Europe’s passenger car fleet.

The ICCT’s analysis shows that fuel cell vehicles powered by renewable (‘green’) hydrogen can achieve very low life-cycle emissions, but if the hydrogen is produced from fossil fuels (‘grey’ hydrogen), emissions can more than triple. The availability of green hydrogen in Europe remains limited, so the real-world emissions benefits of hydrogen vehicles depend heavily on how the hydrogen is produced—a nuance often overlooked in broader debates about zero-emission vehicles.

The reduction in life-cycle emissions of electric cars is primarily due to the increasing use of renewable energy sources in the electricity mix, which makes charging electric vehicles cleaner. Additionally, electric vehicles are more energy-efficient than conventional vehicles, contributing to their lower emissions[1][3].

Battery electric vehicles have significantly lower life-cycle emissions compared to gasoline cars, with reductions of up to 73% to 78% when using renewable electricity. In contrast, hybrids and plug-in hybrids show more modest reductions, with life-cycle emissions 20% and 30% lower than gasoline cars, respectively[2][3].