According to a Niti Aayog report titled “Transforming Trucking in India: Pathways to Zero-Emission Truck Deployment,” which was published on Friday, the trucking industry in India is anticipated to grow by more than four times by 2050. In addition, the research calls on financial institutions to design more enticing financing plans for zero-emission trucks.
According to the report, the number of trucks is anticipated to more than quadruple as road freight travel continues to expand, from 4 million in 2022 to roughly 17 million trucks by 2050. India’s trucking market is also anticipated to grow over 4x by 2050, boosting the country’s economy and transportation emissions. The survey said that 70 per cent of India’s freight is transported by road, emphasising that heavy and medium-duty trucks (HDTs and MDTs) account for the majority of this road transport.
According to the survey, India now transports 4.6 billion tonnes of freight per year, resulting in a 2.2 trillion tonne-kilometer (tonne-km) of transport demand at a cost of Rs 9.5 lakh crore.
The accompanying road freight movement is anticipated to climb to 9.6 trillion tonne-km by 2050 as rising urbanisation, population growth, the development of e-commerce, and rising income levels fuel the need for products, according to the report.
It advised lenders and other financial institutions to arrange more advantageous financing for ZET loans through customised loan products, knowledgeable depreciation criteria, and alternative credit evaluations in light of these market trends.
Battery electric trucks (BETs) and fuel cell electric trucks (FCETs) are examples of zero-emissions trucks (ZETs), which also have lower running costs.
According to the report, transportation costs account for 62 per cent of all logistics expenses in India, which accounts for 14 per cent of the country’s GDP.
Since diesel fuel prices make up the vast bulk of transportation expenses, adopting ZET can significantly reduce associated fuel costs by up to 46 per cent throughout the lifespan of the vehicle, having a significant impact on the Indian economy.
According to the analysis, in 2050, almost nine out of ten trucks that are sold might be ZETs, provided that costs are competitive and technology is mature.
The report called for leveraging policy intervention to reduce charging costs, including upfront subsidies, electricity tariffs that remove demand charges and/or implement EV-friendly rate structures, and concessional land for building out ZET charging infrastructure.
In order to reduce the permitting and interconnection processing periods for charging infrastructure development and deployment soft expenses, it also recommended streamlining the infrastructure installation procedure.
