The drawbacks of electric vehicle batteries are now well known. They are expensive, heavy, and can be difficult to integrate without a purpose-built BEV platform. All of these issues are amplified in medium-duty (MD) and heavy-duty (HD) commercial vehicles.

Battery electric powertrains bring benefits and drawbacks to the medium- and heavy-duty truck sectors depending on how they are used. Suitable applications for both variants depend on a range of factors, primarily electric driving range, the potential for downtime and total cost of ownership.

A growing number of trucks, both MD and HD, already use battery electric powertrains for urban applications. Many more are scheduled to come into operation within the next few years; in California, a state-led mandate will guarantee it beginning in 2024. …