AFIR sets the deployment of alternative fuels infrastructure for battery-electric and hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles on the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) as well as in urban nodes and safe and secure parking areas.
According to the deal, electric charging infrastructure dedicated to heavy-duty vehicles (HDVs) must be deployed every 120km on 15% of the entire length of the TEN-T network by the end of 2025. The distance will then be reduced to 60km on the core, and 100km on the comprehensive, network.
In a press release, IRU has welcomed the increase in the target for 2027 from 40%, as initially proposed by the Council, to 50%, as well as the unequivocal 100% target for 2030.
However, some important questions remain unanswered, says IRU. It notes the derogations that Member States can use to limit infrastructure development or electricity generation, as well as the link between AFIR and the newly proposed CO₂ standards for HDVs.
Commenting on the outcome of the agreement, IRU Director of EU Advocacy, Raluca Marian, said:
“Although we made some progress during the negotiations, AFIR will only get going post-2030, at the earliest. The pre-2030 targets are insufficient. Furthermore, as we’ve been stating all along the negotiation process, without sufficient electrical power, heavy-duty vehicles will not be able to rely on AFIR’s charging infrastructure. AFIR therefore fails to address the electricity grid component of alternative fuels infrastructure for heavy-duty vehicles.”
Marian also expressed frustration with the targets for boosting hydrogen infrastructure.
“The hydrogen part is another big disappointment of AFIR. The European Parliament’s proposal to anticipate the deadline for the deployment of hydrogen refuelling infrastructure to the end of 2027 did not make it into the final text. The road transport industry needs options and cannot rely on one single technology to decarbonise.”
During the trilogue negotiations, the electric power output requirements in urban nodes were increased, but the precise application of this condition “remains vague” in the opinion of the IRU.
“In the transition to zero-emission vehicles, urban areas are the low-hanging fruit. But AFIR puts the cost and responsibility to establish charging points almost entirely on transport companies, most of which are small and medium-sized enterprises with razor thin margins. Buses could, in theory, recharge at depots. But what about trucks and coaches?” highlighted Raluca Marian.
In what the IRU has referred to as a “welcome step”, the European Commission is required to submit to the European Parliament and the Council a technology and market readiness level report dedicated to HDVs by the end of 2024. The Commission will have to evaluate high-power recharging standards, electric road systems, and the availability of liquid hydrogen.
“The industry greatly appreciates AFIR’s report clause requiring the Commission to evaluate the technology and market readiness level from the standpoint of HDVs. The operational requirements of HDVs are different than light-duty vehicles and need to be properly assessed,” emphasised Raluca Marian. We also hope that the revision of the CO₂ standards for HDVs will match the status of alternative fuels infrastructure at every step of the way. Excessively ambitious targets for zero-emission vehicles in 2030 and 2035 do not seem feasible given the foreseeable infrastructure shortfalls,” concluded Marian.
The IRU says it will continue to work with its members and EU authorities to implement the Fit for 55 package and European Green Deal.
Photo: Aschroet, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons