ACT Now: How the Advanced Clean Trucks Rule Will Impact The Electric Grid & Fleets – CleanTechnica

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Annually, trucks in the United States move 10 billion tons of goods over 300 billion miles. This travel emits more than 400 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent — 23 percent of the US transportation sector’s carbon footprint. With this sizeable contribution to emissions, electrifying medium-duty and heavy-duty vehicles will be critical to meeting climate targets.

Inadequate charging will likely be the most critical bottleneck to electrification. Electric trucks, whether charging at a depot or using public corridor charging, require high-powered chargers ranging from 50 to 750+ kW. Strategic, proactive planning for these high-powered charger installations is critical as they often require grid infrastructure upgrades that can be both costly and slow.

In this report, we analyze telematics data from Geotab ITS in 15 states that plan to implement Advanced Clean Truck (ACT) rule regulations. To ensure this strategic, proactive planning, policymakers, utilities and their regulators, fleets, and electric vehicle service providers will need to answer the following questions:

1. How much energy and how many chargers will electric medium- and heavy-duty trucks need?
2. Where will energy demand increase and how will this increase impact the electric grid?
3. Where is infrastructure investment needed and how can costs be reduced?
4. How should stakeholders prioritize investments to ensure they are made equitably and deliver maximum societal value?

This report answers these questions in 15 states, allowing stakeholders in these locations to make informed and effective decisions. Stakeholders in other states can use the report to better understand what they need to consider when beginning or advancing truck electrification.

DOWNLOAD THE REPORT

By Lynn Daniels, Dave Mullaney, Emily Porter. © 2024 Rocky Mountain Institute. Published with permission. Courtesy of RMI.