The road to decarbonisation for the commercial vehicle sector is proving to be a complex and challenging journey, with experts highlighting that a straightforward ‘combustion engine ban’ for lorries and other commercial vehicles is far more difficult to implement than for passenger cars.

Following the European Union’s strict CO2 fleet regulations for passenger vehicles, which effectively introduce a ban on combustion engines, stringent greenhouse gas limits are also being rolled out for commercial vehicles.

Experts at the International Vienna Motor Symposium stressed that the industry is racing to develop a wide array of solutions to match the huge diversity of vehicles on the road – from long-distance trucks and small delivery vans to construction and agricultural machinery.

Prof. Bernhard Geringer, Chairman of the International Vienna Motor Symposium, noted that the entire commercial vehicle industry is working on a wide range of solutions needed to match the diversity of vehicle types on the road in view of the developments expected in 2026.

The legislative pressure is intense. Tobias Stoll, a project manager at the Research Institute for Automotive Engineering and Vehicle Engines Stuttgart (FKFS), pointed out that EU legislation stipulates ‘a 45 percent reduction in CO2 emissions by 2030 compared to 2019,’ with manufacturers facing heavy financial penalties for non-compliance.

This has set the industry's course, with Frederik Zohm (pictured above), Chief Technology Officer at MAN Trucks & Bus, expecting ‘major transformations in the commercial vehicle sector by 2030.’

Egon Christ, Chief Strategist at transport and logistics service provider Mosolf, commented: ‘The course has been set.’

However, the existing transport model, especially for long-haul journeys, is heavily reliant on fossil fuels. A typical diesel lorry has a service life of 1.5 million kilometres, often covering up to 200,000 kilometres annually.

Ten years ago, EU forecasts anticipated a dominant role for hydrogen and a minor one for battery-electric trucks. The reality has turned out to be ‘exactly the opposite,’ according to Nils-Erik Meyer, a division manager at Akkodis Germany.

Today, there are only around 10 fuel-cell truck models in the EU, compared to over 40 battery-electric models.

While battery-electric vehicles are currently the most technologically advanced, their widespread use hinges on a massive overhaul of charging infrastructure.

Oliver Hrazdera, site manager at Akkodis Austria, calculated: “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.”

Batteries, payload and hydrogen’s setbacks

Freight companies prioritise fast turnarounds, which necessitates rapid charging. Dorothea Liebig, a manager at Shell Global Solutions Germany, explained that the maximum charging capacity for trucks ‘is up to eight times higher than for cars.’ She also highlighted the alternative of battery swapping, particularly prevalent in China, where it is ‘fully automated and takes just seven minutes’ at the over 1,200 existing battery replacement stations for trucks.

For many journeys, electric trucks are already viable. Meyer from Akkodis calculated that with a mandatory driver break and recharging, a truck could cover ‘around 630 kilometres are possible in one shift. This covers 90 percent of all journeys.’

However, a key disadvantage of battery-electric lorries is the impact on payload, which is reduced by ‘three to six tonnes for the drive system, mainly due to the batteries,’ according to Meyer. By contrast, hydrogen fuel cells only reduce the payload by one tonne.

Despite this advantage, enthusiasm for fuel cells has cooled in Europe. Markus Heyn, Managing Director of Robert Bosch and Chairman of Bosch Mobility, reported that in Europe and the US, a major hurdle has been the substantial cooling requirements for fuel cells, which need ‘two to two and a half times more cooling surface area than diesel trucks,’.

According to Rolf Dobereiner, product line manager at AVL List. This increased requirement consumes up to 40 kilowatts, reducing driving performance and creating challenges for achieving the high-power outputs needed for heavy-duty haulage.

An unexpected dark horse has emerged: the hydrogen combustion engine. This technology offers compelling benefits, as it doesn't require the costly, high-purity hydrogen needed for fuel cells.

Christian Barba, Senior Manager at Daimler Truck, noted that it saves costs ‘as 80 percent of the parts of a diesel engine can be reused.’

Moreover, Anton Arnberger, Senior Product Manager at AVL List, reported that it ‘is the only zero-emission technology that does not require the use of rare earths.’

The hydrogen engine ‘could achieve the torque and power of a gas or diesel engine,’ said Lei Liu, a manager at Cummins in Beijing. Cummins is testing these vehicles in India, where they are seen as a main pillar for transport decarbonisation, given the lack of a comprehensive power grid required for electric trucks.

Developers are also looking at alternatives to gaseous hydrogen. The trend in Europe is moving towards liquid hydrogen, which allows for longer ranges and is cheaper to store.

Furthermore, Yuan Shen, Chief Developer at Zhejiang Geely Holding in China, proposed methanol as ‘the best carrier of hydrogen,’ as it is a liquid fuel that is easy and safer to store and transport.

Shipping, special vehicles and hybridisation

Decarbonisation is equally challenging on the high seas. Andreas Wimmer, a professor at Graz University of Technology, reported that engines for the 100,000 ocean-going vessels in service today have a life span of over 25 years and cost hundreds of millions of euros.

By 2050, these giants must also be CO2-free. While the combustion engine will remain, fossil heavy fuel oil must be replaced by ammonia (considered an ‘up-and-comer’), methanol or limited-quantity biofuel.

The special vehicle sector – such as construction and agricultural machinery – presents one of the toughest challenges. Stefan Loser, department head at MAN Truck & Bus, noted that a forage harvester would need ‘36 tonnes of batteries to run purely on electricity,’ which is impractical. For such machines, which are used intensively for short periods, hydrogen fuel cells or combustion engines running on synthetic fuels will be essential.

Finally, in the USA, where the decarbonisation of transport is ‘less aggressive than in Europe,’ according to Chris Bitsis, head of development at the Southwest Research Institute, hybridisation (the combination of combustion engines and electric drives) is seen as a key strategy to maintain everyday usability while significantly reducing consumption and emissions.

Summing up the current situation, Prof. Bernhard Geringer concluded that battery-electric drives in commercial vehicles are currently only realistic for distances of up to 500 km and with sufficient fast-charging options. He stressed that the special vehicle sector is particularly difficult, which is where ‘hydrogen fuel cell drives or combustion engines with synthetic fuels come into play.’

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Intangles has launched an AIS-140-certified product portfolio in India across four distinct configurations: InCert, InSight, InGenious and InVision+. The product lineup supports commercial vehicle segments ranging from three-wheelers and cabs to light, medium and heavy commercial vehicles and buses.

The portfolio integrates India's AIS-140 vehicle tracking and emergency alert requirements with predictive fleet intelligence. InCert provides certified tracking, trip management, geofencing, and driver alerts. InSight adds driver behaviour reporting, fuel consumption insights and fault codes with repair guidance. InGenious introduces predictive vehicle health monitoring, fuel management, and automated operations tools. InVision+ combines the certified hardware with AI-powered video telematics using dual cameras and in-cabin voice alerts.

All four versions run on Intangles' InRoute fleet intelligence platform. The devices are available through field sales channels and the company's direct-to-consumer platform, InCentral, which handles compatibility checks, purchases, and VLTD certificate generation.

Anup Patil, CEO, Intangles, said, "The size of a fleet should not determine whether an operator can access predictive intelligence. A vehicle off the road can significantly affect a business, whether it owns five vehicles or five hundred. With a certified device already installed and connected whenever the vehicle runs, operators should be able to choose the value it delivers to their business. Intangles’ new range brings this promise to life through #ChoiceOkPlease, giving operators the flexibility and freedom to choose a solution that meets compliance requirements and addresses their everyday operational challenges."

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Affordable Robotic & Automation (ARAPL) has announced that its subsidiary ARAPL RaaS, operating under the Humro brand, has received Conditional Approval from the US Department of War for its specified autonomous industrial vehicles under the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) framework.

The approval, issued by the FCC following national security assessments, covers Humro’s Maia2000 autonomous pallet trucks and Atlas AC2000 autonomous forklifts. The decision grants the specified devices exemption from FCC Covered List restrictions, which were introduced in July 2026 for foreign-produced robotic devices.

Humro is among 13 global robotics operators, and the only Indian entity, to receive conditional authorization under the updated guidelines. The approval enables the company to enter the US material-handling market, subject to compliance with onshoring plans, local manufacturing commitments over the next two years, and equipment authorisation requirements.

Robinson Philipose, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Humro, said, "This is a significant milestone for Humro and an important validation of our technology and our commitment to building globally competitive robotics solutions. Being among the first few robotics companies worldwide to receive Conditional Approval under the revised US regulatory framework is a matter of great pride for us."

"Following the regulatory changes, our team worked relentlessly to replace certain key components that did not meet the revised guidelines. This also required us to make corresponding changes to our technology to ensure compliance. We completed the modifications, submitted our application and secured FCC approval within a remarkably short period. This demonstrates the agility and technical capabilities of our team. The approval strengthens our position as we look to expand our international footprint and take our autonomous material-handling solutions to customers in the US. We see considerable potential for robotics to transform warehouse, manufacturing and logistics operations. As part of the Conditional Approval, we are also committed to commencing manufacturing in the US in phases over the next two years. We are actively looking to partner with like-minded local players to establish our manufacturing operations in the country," Philipose.

Melind Padole, Founder and Director, ARAPL Group, said, "These are exciting times, with our teams in the US and India expanding rapidly. Securing FCC approval within such a short period demonstrates the strength of our team and the capabilities of our products. As we prepare to commence manufacturing in the US in line with FCC requirements, we have also begun working towards meeting the requirements of the Buy American Act (BAA) and the Trade Agreements Act (TAA). In parallel, we are developing a new technology platform based on Vision-Language Action models. Our next-generation robots will be more human-like in their ability to perceive, understand and interact with their surroundings, and will incorporate reinforcement learning capabilities. This will enable them to learn from experience, adapt to changing environments and perform increasingly complex tasks."

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Infineon Technologies has announced a technology agreement with Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. to integrate a microcontroller-based design pattern into Qualcomm's Snapdragon Ride reference platforms for high-performance computing and in-vehicle Artificial Intelligence (AI).

The initiative combines Qualcomm's systems-on-chip (SoC) with Infineon's hardware and software components for safety management, connectivity and memory handling to support centralised architectures in Software-Defined Vehicles (SDVs). The development will be highlighted ahead of the electronica trade fair in Munich.

The subsystem is built around an Infineon AURIX microcontroller and OPTIREG integrated circuits for power management, operating alongside Qualcomm's Snapdragon Ride and Ride Flex platforms to monitor system health, coordinate safety mechanisms and provide real-time control.

The architecture is supported by a dedicated software package designed to pre-integrate firmware and connect with vehicle networks such as Ethernet and CAN. In addition to the microcontroller subsystem, Infineon contributes BRIGHTLANE Automotive Ethernet and USB connectivity devices alongside SEMPER NOR Flash memory qualified for the Snapdragon Ride ecosystem.

Peter Schiefer, President of the Automotive Division, Infineon, said, "With Qualcomm Technologies’ Snapdragon Ride, we enable the automotive industry to build and scale a new generation of car computers that combine tremendous computing and AI capabilities with the reliability required on the road. Our collaboration reflects a fundamental approach to centralised vehicle computing, which combines a powerful SoC with a set of specialised components around it, including a safety microcontroller, power management, connectivity and memory devices. All these components need to work together seamlessly to help enable safe vehicle operation. Infineon provides essential functional building blocks and integration expertise for building the trust foundation for software-defined vehicles that leverage the power of AI."

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LG Energy Solution has announced the launch of the Battery Innovation Contest 2026 (BIC 2026), inviting universities and research institutions globally to submit research proposals between 29 October and 6 December 2026 via its online open innovation platform, BRIDGE.

Now in its 10^th year, the program aims to identify and fund research concepts with potential for commercialisation across the battery industry. BIC 2026 incorporates two application streams: a thematic call addressing specific development topics identified by LG Energy Solution across materials, cells, battery management systems and artificial intelligence; and an open-topic call permitting researchers to submit original proposals.

To safeguard intellectual property, the contest uses a two-stage evaluation process requiring a brief concept proposal during the initial review before shortlisted applicants submit detailed submissions.

Since 2017, the Battery Innovation Contest has supported approximately 50 research projects. Select projects with verified feasibility have been expanded into longer-term initiatives at the company's Frontier Research Laboratory joint research centres. Previous outcomes include patent filings for physics-based battery management models and research on room-temperature all-solid-state batteries published in academic journals.

Je-Young Kim, CTO, LG Energy Solution, said, "By joining forces, industry and academia can drive innovation across the battery industry. Building on our differentiated technological competitiveness, LG Energy Solution will continue to accelerate its growth in the battery market."

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