by President Trump’s policy could threaten many large green energy projects in the coming years, but his election has already given a big blow to an ambitious effort in California to replace thousands of trucks with diesel with battery-driven semi-final.
The Californian plan, which was closely monitored by other states and countries, was intended to make a big leap forward last year, with a requirement that some of the more than 30,000 trucks move in and out of ports, Semis start To be used that does not send carbon dioxide.
But after Mr Trump had been chosen, the Regulators in California went into their plan, for which a federal distance was needed that the new administration, which is closely tailored to the oil industry, would probably have rejected. That does not allow the state to be able to forcing truck companies to clean up their fleets. It was a big disappointment for the state, which has long been reporting to have tail emission rules that are stricter than federal standards because of the notorious smog of California.
Some TransportExperts said that the efforts of California even had problems before the elections of Mr Trump. The batteries that electric trucks are in force are too expensive. They take too long to charge. And there are not enough places to connect the trucks.
“It was overly ambitious,” said Daniel Sperling, a professor at the University of California, Davis, who specializes in Sustainable Transport, referring to the program, making truck drivers green rigs.
Officials in California insist that their efforts are not doomed and say that they will keep it alive with other rules and by offering truck drivers to become electric.
“We know that we have a lot of work to do, but we also have aids to achieve this” A charging station for trucks near the port of Long Beach in January.
California requires truck manufacturers to sell an increasing number of zero emissions heavy trucks in the state. This rule is more protected against every challenge by the Trump administration. In an agreement, after the rule was introduced, the manufacturers committed themselves to meet the requirements, regardless of the outcome of a future lawsuit, and California as a rule agreed.
In the theory, California’s plans to first electrify portions, trucks had a lot for it. Vapens of such vehicles contribute to well -documented health problems such as asthma in children in neighborhoods in the vicinity of the ports and warehouses. Heavy transport in California is estimated to become so much carbon dioxide broadcast, the main cause of climate change, annually as New Zealand.
These trucks that can also handle the battery-driven semis on one load, also around 200 miles. The hope was that – with the correct regulatory sticks and carrots – carriers, truck manufacturers, loading companies and utilities would create an electric truck network that would serve as a springboard for a wider effort to remove diesel platforms from the state by 2045.
It was not that simple in practice.
Port Truckers are overwhelmingly small operators who only earn slender profit. They usually prefer used diesel platforms that sell for only $ 40,000 and are cautious to take the financial risk to acquire electrical tractor trailers, which can cost around $ 150,000 after government incentives. Without that help, the trucks cost $ 500,000.
Truckers earn money by wringing out of trucks as many hours as possible. But electric rigs can take up to two hours to charge.
“The reality is that we don’t really expect to earn a lot of money at the moment,” said Erick Gordon, vice -president of re -defined transport, whose fleet of 25 dieselrigs containers moved from the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles to warehouses to in The area. He weighs if he should lease five electric trucks.
The State had hoped that they would be newly registered port cars zero emissions vehicles, most of such trucks nowadays run on batteries. Since Port Truckers have to withdraw after a certain number of years of diesel vehicles, the rule would have gradually removed all diesel cars from ports. California had sought an exemption for the rule of the Environmental Protection Agency because the Regulation is stricter than federal standards. But the Biden administration has not approved the request in the last few weeks.
Yet some truck leaders said they intended to continue to use electric trucks.
“It doesn’t really have any influence on what we are going,” said Jessica Cordero, vice -president at NFI Cal Cartage, a large logistics company. “We have our own initiatives and goals.”
NFI has 70 electric and 50 diesel cars that are active in California and used subsidies to cover the costs of the vehicles. The electric fleet makes a profit, said Mrs. Cordero, partly because it costs less to feed and maintain the vehicles.
Rudy Diaz, Chief Executive of Hight Logistics, a Port Trucking Company in Long Beach with 20 Electric Semis and Chargers in his garden, said he had also achieved considerable cost savings. But now that port truckers are not obliged to buy green vehicles, he fears that competitors who implement much cheaper diesel vehicles will have an advantage.
“It makes me nervous – we have invested in this infrastructure and these new trucks in the hope that the exemption will pass,” he said, referring to the EPA exemption.
Because registrants can no longer force truckers to turn green, the financial carrots that are available for truck drivers are even more important.
Climate United, a group of non -profit organizations for the environment Specialized in green investments, is planning to spend $ 250 million that received it in August from the Biden administration on 500 electric trucks that are planning to lease to small truck companies Via Forum Mobility, a company that is also charged.
The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach impose costs on diesel cars. Some of those funds are used to subsidize electric trucks and chargers. And last year the California Air Resources Board decided that part of the money that electricity companies get from selling clean energy credits would also be used to subsidize zero emission trucks.
Some people involved in the push -think -technological progress will help to increase the use of electric trucks.
Salim Youssefzadeh, co-founder and chief executive of Wattev, a truck loading company, said that new, higher capacity loaders can charge trucks in just 30 minutes, allowing truck drivers to return quickly. In some of its locations, Wattev builds on the construction of solar energy and battery storage, which lowers the electricity costs.
Lower prices for electric trucks will also help. Wen Han started an electric truck company, Windrose Technology, in 2022 in China. This year he wants to start selling his vehicles in the United States for around $ 250,000 – well under the costs of that sold by more established manufacturers. He said he could earn money for that price, even with American rates, which are 40 percent for the truck quindrosis, because of his low production costs.
“It is our job to make diesel cars outdated,” he said, “and that happens with or without any form of subsidies.”
Bianca Calanche, whose company, Jaspem Truckline, is active in ports in the Los Angeles region, said it would be difficult to use electric trucks because she had no chargers in her truck depot. But she is still considering them because she is concerned that subsidies for electric trucks run out and that the state will try to force companies to electrify as soon as Mr Trump has left office.
“This will still come back to us,” she said. “It’s California.”
