‘Combustion engine ban’ for commercial vehicles more difficult than expected

Experts at the International Vienna Motor Symposium have highlighted wide variety of drive solutions for commercial vehicles, from hydrogen and eFuels to battery electric

Following the EU's strict CO₂ fleet regulations for passenger cars, which include a so-called ‘combustion engine ban’, stricter greenhouse gas limits are also being introduced for commercial vehicles. As Prof. Bernhard Geringer, Chairman of the International Vienna Motor Symposium, stressed that in view of the developments expected in 2026, the entire commercial vehicle industry is working on a wide range of solutions needed to match the diversity of vehicle types on the road – from long-distance trucks to small delivery vans, construction vehicles and agricultural machinery.

Frederik Zohm, MAN Trucks & Bus (Credit: ÖVK; reprint free of charge)

Frederik Zohm, Chief Technology Officer at MAN Trucks & Bus, said he expected ‘major transformations in the commercial vehicle sector by 2030. Tobias Stoll, project manager at the Research Institute for Automotive Engineering and Vehicle Engines Stuttgart (FKFS), noted in Vienna that EU legislation stipulates ’a 45 per cent reduction in CO₂ emissions by 2030 compared to 2019". Manufacturers face heavy penalties for non-compliance. Egon Christ, chief strategist at Mosolf, a transport and logistics service provider, commented: ‘The course has been set.’

Transport still relies almost entirely on fossil fuels. Long-distance lorries, for example, cover up to 200,000 kilometres per year, or around 1,500 kilometres per tank when fully loaded. The typical service life of a diesel lorry is 1.5 million kilometres.

EU forecasts: exactly the opposite happened

Stoll from FKFS predicted ‘that by 2030, urban and short-distance transport will be emission-free and largely battery-electric.’ Which concept will prevail for long-distance transport ‘depends very much on the energy supply.’ Nils-Erik Meyer, division manager at large engineering service provider, Akkodis Germany, demonstrated how significant this influence is. According to EU forecasts made ten years ago, hydrogen should have already beeen playing a major role by now whilst battery-electric trucks had only been expected to play a minor role due to issues with range. The reality has turned out to be, in fact, exactly the opposite. There are currently 30 truck models with fuel cell drives worldwide and less than ten in the EU. However, there are 130 models worldwide with battery electric drives, and more than 40 of those are across the EU. However, for the use of electric trucks to continue to spread, the charging infrastructure must be significantly expanded. ‘For trucks with an electric range of 500 kilometres, the EU needs 2,000 charging points with 650 or 1,000 kilowatts of charging power,’ calculated Oliver Hrazdera, site manager at Akkodis Austria.

Freight companies expect their drivers to lose as little time as possible when recharging. ‘The maximum charging capacity for trucks is up to eight times higher than for cars,’ said Dorothea Liebig, manager at Shell Global Solutions Germany. The charging capacity of trucks is limited by the heat generated in the charging system. This must therefore be cooled. Shell is also involved in the development of megawatt charging systems (MCS). These could be introduced primarily at freight carriers' bases (depots). According to MAN, around 50 per cent of electric trucks already charge their batteries there today. Shell has developed flexible charging systems that can be used during truck loading or unloading to save time.

China: Already 1,200 battery replacement stations

"Even faster is a battery change, which is being promoted particularly in China, especially by battery manufacturer CATL. This is fully automated and takes just seven minutes. There are already more than 1,200 battery replacement stations for trucks in China," said Liebig. This system allows for charging that is very gentle on the battery and the grid. However, it requires a high level of standardisation and investment on the part of truck and battery manufacturers.

A modern electric truck with a payload of 24 tonnes can travel around 500 kilometres on a single battery charge. If the driver takes a break after four and a half hours of driving, as required by law, and recharges the batteries during this time, ‘around 630 kilometres are possible in one shift. This covers 90 per cent of all journeys,’ said Meyer from Akkodis. This means that only the remaining 10 per cent need to be completed using other fuels.

Fuel cells reduce payload less

One disadvantage of electric trucks concerns their payload. According to Meyer, the payload is reduced by ‘three to six tonnes for the drive system, mainly due to the batteries’. Fuel cells, which run on hydrogen without emissions, reduce the payload by only one tonne. Alongside the short refuelling time, this was one of the main reasons behind the high expectations placed on this drive system ten years ago. In the meantime, the enthusiasm has faded in Europe. In China, on the other hand, hundreds of fuel cell trucks are already being used to transport coal from Inner Mongolia, reported Markus Heyn, Managing Director of Robert Bosch GmbH and Chairman of Bosch Mobility. The necessary hydrogen can be produced there very cost-effectively.

Hurdle: cooling costs

Apart from the lack of hydrogen infrastructure, cooling requirements for fuel cells have proven to be a major hurdle in Europe and the US. Fuel cell trucks require ‘two to two and a half times more cooling surface area than diesel trucks,’ said Rolf Döbereiner, product line manager at AVL List, where work is underway to develop a more efficient system. Unlike diesel trucks, where around a third of the waste heat generated during engine operation is dissipated via the exhaust gas, this is not possible with fuel cells. The necessary cooler and fan which are required consume up to 40 kilowatts, reducing driving performance.

Fuel cells also show performance weaknesses in full-load operation, such as driving uphill, due to the cooling requirements. ‘Today, an engine output of more than 350 kilowatts is standard for a semi-trailer truck,’ said Joachim Blum, head of fuel cell system development at Cellcentric, a joint venture between Daimler and Volvo for the development and production of fuel cells for heavy commercial vehicles. Achieving 350 kilowatts of power with fuel cells in the installation space of a diesel engine ‘is not yet possible, especially at high altitudes.’

In the USA, for example, the Eisenhower Pass is 3,400 metres above sea level. Cellcentric is working on better fuel cells with up to 375 kilowatts of power, 20 per cent less consumption (six kilograms of hydrogen per 100 kilometres) and 40 per cent less waste heat. However, they will also be much more expensive than a combustion engine for hydrogen.

Zero-emission technology without rare earths

However, the hydrogen combustion engine has other major advantages: it does not require high-purity hydrogen with 99.999 per cent purity. It saves costs, ‘as 80 per cent of the parts of a diesel engine can be reused,’ said Christian Barba, Senior Manager at Daimler Truck. ‘It is the only zero-emission technology that does not require the use of rare earths,’ reported Anton Arnberger, Senior Product Manager at AVL List. Unlike passenger cars, trucks with hydrogen engines and appropriate exhaust gas purification are also considered emission-free in the EU. ‘The hydrogen engine could achieve the torque and power of a gas or diesel engine,’ said Lei Liu, manager at the US company Cummins in Beijing. Cummins is testing hydrogen trucks in India, among other places, where they are considered one of the main pillars for decarbonising transport – unlike electric trucks, which require a comprehensive power grid, which is considered unrealistic in India.

Liquid hydrogen would have more potential

However, developers are still struggling with a number of technical problems with hydrogen engines, particularly combustion anomalies and material embrittlement, reported Jonas Wärnberg, project manager at Volvo Group Trucks Technology. According to Peter Loidolt, head of research and development at SAG New Technologies, the trend in Europe is also moving towards liquid hydrogen. This allows for long ranges, thereby improving the advantage over battery-electric drives. In addition, an aluminium-steel tank is sufficient, which is significantly cheaper than Kevlar tanks for gaseous hydrogen. According to SAG, the problem of liquid hydrogen ‘blow-off’, i.e. the escape of hydrogen from the tank during downtime, is not a major issue for commercial vehicles, as these vehicles hardly ever have any downtime. Liquid hydrogen for fuel cells also has great future potential for non-electrified trains.

Methanol, the better hydrogen carrier?

However, Yuan Shen, chief developer at Zhejiang Geely Holding in China, saw an even better solution: ‘We believe that methanol is the best carrier of hydrogen. One litre of methanol contains one and a half times as much pure hydrogen as one litre of liquid hydrogen. Methanol is a liquid fuel that is easy to store and transport and, on top of that, much safer than hydrogen.’ Geely wants to establish a closed cycle with CO₂-neutral (green) e-methanol for heavy goods transport in China. Shen presented a methanol truck with on-board CO₂ capture. ‘This will enable us to capture most of the CO₂ caused by traffic. This will make it much easier to achieve overall CO₂ neutrality,’ said Shen.

On-board CO₂ capture also for ocean-going vessels

On-board CO₂ capture is also a way for ocean-going vessels to improve their carbon footprint, reported Andreas Wimmer, professor at Graz University of Technology. There are currently around 100,000 ocean-going vessels in service worldwide. They handle more than 90 per cent of trade. Large ships can now transport more than 24,000 containers or more than 7,000 passengers. ‘The larger engines have an output of 80 megawatts and are powered by 99 per cent fossil fuels. The systems cost hundreds of millions of euros and have a service life of more than 25 years,’ said Wimmer. But by 2050, even these giants of the sea are to be CO₂-free in terms of their carbon footprint.

Ammonia or biofuel instead of heavy fuel oil on the high seas?

The combustion engine will continue to dominate in this sector, but fossil fuels such as heavy fuel oil are to be replaced by alternatives. Biofuel is very attractive, but only available in limited quantities. When it comes to e-fuels, ‘hydrogen is considered the leading light of fuels, methanol a very pragmatic option, and ammonia the up-and-comer.’ The choice of fuel also depends on which e-fuels are brought to Europe by ship. ‘If it is ammonia, it makes sense to use ammonia as fuel for the ship as well,’ said Wimmer. Many engines will follow a dual-fuel principle. For liner ships, such as those in the fjords of Norway, battery-electric propulsion is also considered attractive. Nuclear propulsion is also a recurring topic of discussion.

Hybrid drives in the US

In order to improve the environmental balance as cost- and energy-efficiently as possible, hybridisation, i.e. the combination of combustion engines and electric drives, is often chosen. This applies not only to ships, but also to heavy trucks in the USA, as Chris Bitsis, head of development at the Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio, USA, reported. ‘The decarbonisation of transport is less aggressive in the USA than in Europe,’ said Bitsis. However, from 2027 onwards, the targets for CO₂ and nitrogen oxides will be significantly tightened, which will require new technological approaches. Hydrogen drives with fuel cells or combustion engines are not very practical because ‘the hydrogen infrastructure is also very problematic in the USA,’ said Bitsis. His institute sees hybridisation as playing a key role. This will maintain everyday usability and significantly reduce consumption and nitrogen oxide emissions.

Special vehicles must remain suitable for everyday use

Despite decarbonisation, everyday usability must also be maintained for special-purpose vehicles. ‘A forage harvester with 680 kilowatts and a daily consumption of one tonne of diesel would need 36 tonnes of batteries to run purely on electricity. That would take up 28 cubic metres,’ said Stefan Löser, department head at MAN Truck & Bus. ‘These machines are only used for a few weeks a year, but then day and night. They are refuelled in the field, which is not an option for batteries.’ According to a study by Graz University of Technology, less than ten per cent of machines with more than 300 kilowatts in the agricultural and construction sectors will be battery-electric in 2050. MAN has developed a new, more powerful 30-litre V12 engine for these applications. In future, this engine will also be able to run on two different fuels (dual fuel), such as methanol and diesel, in accordance with customer requirements.

However, it is impossible to predict how widespread retrofitting solutions will become in the future, at least in the ocean-going vessel sector, said Wimmer. Francesco C. Pesce, manager at Dumarey Automotive Italia, also presented a conversion to hydrogen for diesel engines in light commercial vehicles.

Egon Christ, chief strategist at Mosolf, a transport and logistics service provider, reported on the customer's perspective of the experience of transforming his fleet of 800 lorries. The total cost of a vehicle, including the purchase price, operating costs, infrastructure costs and energy costs, is a key factor in any investment decision. Christ: ‘We don't just need vehicles, we also need the systemic requirements to be able to operate them.’ When it comes to zero-emission vehicles, ‘battery-electric vehicles are the most technically advanced and easy to use. With 600 kilowatt-hour batteries, ranges of up to 500 kilometres are possible.’ – In order to reduce the energy costs for electric trucks, Mosolf is investing heavily in its own PV systems. ‘The best costs can only be achieved with self-generated energy,’ said Christ.

HVO for existing fleet

According to Christ, second-generation fuel cell drives with liquid hydrogen in the tank are not yet available, and the same applies to hydrogen combustion engines. Christ believes that only green hydrogen, which is three times as expensive as diesel, makes sense. This means that it is not economically viable, and there is also a lack of sufficient refuelling infrastructure. In the medium and long term, ‘hydrogen will have a future in mobile applications. If hydrogen is used, it will be liquid hydrogen,’ said Christ. In his experience, HVO 100 (hydrogenated vegetable oil) is the simplest form of decarbonisation for the existing fleet, but HVO is only available in limited quantities.

Latest developments at the International Vienna Motor Symposium 2026

The chairman of the Vienna Motor Symposium, Prof. Bernhard Geringer, summed up that battery-electric drives in commercial vehicles are currently only realistic for distances of up to 500 km and with sufficient fast-charging options. The special vehicle sector is particularly difficult. This is where hydrogen fuel cell drives or combustion engines with synthetic fuels come into play – especially in construction and agricultural machinery: ‘You can find out what variety of drive solutions the next few years will bring in the commercial vehicle and passenger car sectors, as well as for special-purpose vehicles, two-wheelers, aircraft and ships, at the Int. Vienna Motor Symposium 2026: https://wiener-motorensymposium.at/en/programme.’

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