After two editions in Leuven, the Zero Emission Xperience settled at Cargo Lifting in Villers-le-Bouillet. Not a coincidental choice (see further in the ‘From Management’ section), but a location that painfully exposes the obstacles that Walloon transporters face when they want to electrify their activities.
Although sales of electric trucks are increasing in Belgium, this is certainly not the case in the south of the country. In fact, the counter is still at zero. The only two Walloon transporters that purchased an electric truck (Van Mieghem and Weerts Supply Chain) did so through a Flemish subsidiary. The problem is not the will, but the fact that the Walloon Region has not yet taken any measures to encourage the purchase of electric trucks.
The Walloon Region is sympathetic, but…
François Desquesnes, the new Walloon Minister of Mobility, whom we spoke to a few days before the ‘Zero Emission
An alternative would be to modulate the kilometer charge based on CO₂ emissions, as Flanders does with a favorable rate for electric trucks. But according to the minister, that is precisely the problem: “In Flanders and Brussels it is a tax, but in Wallonia it is a user fee for public roads that is linked to the duration of use. So we cannot set it to zero,” he explained.
Desquesnes is actually right, but the new Eurovignette directive will oblige Member States (and therefore indirectly also the Belgian Regions) to include a CO₂ component in their toll rates. Belgium has a postponement until 2028, but Wallonia will have to find a solution by then. In the meantime, the Viapass rate for electric trucks remains the same as Euro 6.
Yet François Desquesnes proves to be much more accessible to the transport sector than his predecessor. For the time being, his policy focuses on the installation of public charging points. However, Sofico, responsible for installing fast chargers along Walloon main roads, is experiencing difficulties in finding locations with sufficient power supply.
“This is especially difficult along the motorways in the Ardennes, because they are far from the major electricity networks. It therefore costs more to get the power there. Moreover, the capacity provided by Elia and the distribution system operators is in some cases insufficient to guarantee a full service 100% of the time. We are therefore working on more flexible solutions, which offer, for example, 80 to 90% availability. This should allow for faster charging points along our to install highways,” said the minister.
Transporters are somewhat disappointed
This explanation did not surprise the Liège transporter Luc Beyers. He strongly believes in the technological potential of electric trucks, but fears that he will not have access to them quickly, resulting in unfair competition compared to Flemish colleagues: “They receive support that we do not get. That makes it difficult to position ourselves among customers. I hear that charging points are being opened along the highways, but what will the electricity cost there? If we can charge on our own site or at the customer’s site with a good agreement, then yes. feasible.”
Luc Beyers also highlighted the problem of the extra weight of electric trucks and the importance of a higher permitted mass (MMA) to maintain the same payload, a point that the minister did not mention. In summary: Beyers (together with other transporters present) has the feeling that he has to enter into a battle with unequal weapons.
Technology has advanced significantly
And that’s a shame, because companies that already use electric trucks report largely positive experiences. Pascal Libens (Coca-Cola) illustrated this during his interview: “We currently have 24 electric trucks on three sites. Not in Wallonia, because that is where we rent our buildings, while in Flanders we own them. We started with a first generation that offered 150 km of autonomy, but the second generation doubles that. The drivers are no longer afraid of the range, and we are increasingly reducing our safety margin to get closer to the WLTP autonomy.”
Technically speaking, autonomy is no longer the most important stumbling block, it is the charging time that determines how usable an electric truck is. That is the next hurdle that must be overcome, both in Wallonia and Flanders.
