Key points:
- Electric truck charging demand in Europe could reach around 100 TWh a year by 2035 and 200 TWh by 2045.
- Germany, France, the UK, Spain and Italy are expected to have the highest demand.
- The top 10% of areas could account for 67% to 90% of charging energy in each country.
- In 2035, the area around Folkestone could need 502 MWh a week, with peaks of 5.9 MW and 69% of it from public charging.
- In the UK, zero-emission trucks made up just 1.1% of new HGV registrations in Q3 2026.
Demand will cluster in a few places
The report, published on 24 September, models charging demand in the EU, the UK, Norway and Switzerland. It splits the map into hexagons of about 250 km² and calculates demand in 15-minute intervals over a typical week, for both depot and public charging.
Under a moderate electrification scenario, demand reaches around 100 TWh a year in 2035 and around 200 TWh in 2045. The largest volumes are expected in Germany, France, the UK, Spain and Italy.
Demand will not be spread evenly. In each country, the top 1% of areas capture roughly 25% to 33% of charging energy. The top 10% account for 67% to 90%. These hotspots are mainly along major freight corridors, at motorway junctions, in metropolitan areas and at industrial hubs.
“Infrastructure deployment and grid planning should therefore focus on the areas where demand is most certain and most intense,” said Steffen Link, researcher at Fraunhofer ISI and first author of the report, in a press release.
Folkestone: a public charging hotspot
The study gives Folkestone as one of three examples of areas dominated by public en-route charging. In the moderate scenario for 2035, the area close to Dover and the Channel Tunnel would need 502 MWh a week, with peak demand of 5.9 MW. Around 69% of that energy would come from public charging, with peaks around noon and in the early evening.
For comparison, the busiest depot-led areas in Europe look very different. Magdeburg in Germany, on the A2 motorway, would need 1,445 MWh a week with a peak of 22.4 MW, mostly at depots and overnight.
Across all countries, depot charging remains the backbone, with a share above 70% to 80% of total charging energy. The authors note that the UK had the best coverage of any country in the detailed depot-level data used in the model.
The UK market is still small
The demand in the study depends on hauliers actually buying electric trucks. According to the SMMT, 9,941 new HGVs were registered in the UK in Q3 2026, up 7.2% on a year earlier. However, zero-emission registrations fell by 50.7% and took just 1.1% of the market. Year to date, their share is 1.0%.
SMMT chief executive Mike Hawes called the overall market recovery “a welcome boost for the sector, albeit from a low base”. The organisation says a national infrastructure strategy is “crucial to grow operator confidence”. Trans.INFO reported on the figures in October.
The government-funded Zero Emission HGV and Infrastructure Demonstrator (ZEHID) shows the current scale. By mid-2026, more than 240 zero-emission HGVs had been deployed and more than 40 charging sites commissioned, with chargers from 43 kW to 5 MW. The trucks had used 4,500 MWh of electricity in total. That is about as much as the Folkestone area alone could need in nine weeks in 2035.
Grid connections are the bottleneck
The ZEHID report says one depot site was quoted a five-year wait for a grid connection, and connection times and costs varied widely between sites. The SMMT has warned that some operators face waits of up to 15 years.
To help, the government added £170 million to the Depot Charging Scheme in March as part of a £1 billion package. It covers up to 70% of charging infrastructure costs, up to £1 million. Grants of up to £81,000 are available for the heaviest zero-emission trucks.
What it means for hauliers
For most UK operators, electric trucks will be charged at their own depots. That makes an early grid connection application the first step, long before trucks are ordered. Operators running to Dover, Folkestone and the Channel Tunnel should expect more public charging along their routes.
“Our results show that prioritizing just the top 10% of locations for charging hubs could cover up to 90% of total electric truck electricity demand across Europe,” said Hussein Basma, senior researcher at the ICCT. Trans.INFO has also looked at where hotspots will emerge across Europe.
