AI, Data and BEVs Power a New Model for European Long-Haul Transport

Scania Ventures, LOTS Group and JUNA Technologies, together with carrier HAWA, operate one of Europe’s longest electric truck routes, demonstrating that high utilisation, long-haul battery-electric transport is commercially viable already today.

By combining LOTS Group’s AI-based platform Pathfinder with JUNAS’s electrified vehicle solutions and Hawa’s operational logistics expertise, the partners are creating a scalable model for electrified long-distance logistics in Europe. The 1,250-kilometre corridor is already operating in daily commercial service across central Europe. The partnership prioritises operational quality and cost efficiency, demonstrating how intelligent planning, effective asset utilisation, and robust daily operational management can help customers minimise their CO₂ emissions.

LOTS uses Pathfinder to analyse routes, charging requirements and shipment data to design and optimise electric long-haul operations under real-world conditions. This enables the partners to simulate various scenarios, minimise operational risk and adjust routes prior to broader deployment.

At the same time, the setup is designed to be scalable. By analysing operational data over time, the corridor can adapt to new transport flows and be expanded to include additional zero-emission capacity as infrastructure and customer needs evolve.

JUNA provides access to electric truck capacity via a pay-per-use model, thereby reducing barriers to entry for battery-electric long-haul transport. The partners have together created a fully integrated, end-to-end electric corridor that functions in day-to-day operations.

“With Pathfinder, we can design and run electric routes that meet customer requirements and real-world road conditions. The platform enables us to simulate different scenarios, reduce risk and optimise flows before moving into full-scale operations,” says Johan Palmqvist, Managing Director at LOTS Group Europe.

“For JUNA Technologies, this corridor proves that electric long-haul transport is not a pilot project but a viable, day-to-day solution,” says Johan Kjellner, Managing Director and COO at JUNA Technologies. “By integrating our electric truck capacity into a data-driven, AI-optimised network, we can deliver reliable, zero-emission transport at scale”

Electric long-haul road transport is often portrayed as a solution that will only become commercially viable around 2030. This corridor challenges that narrative by demonstrating that heavy battery-electric vehicles can reliably run demanding inter-city stretches with tight delivery deadlines, and ensure year-round utilisation.

 

Kerry County Council first to trial carbon neutral truck. #Kerry #Scania #HGV #CarbonNeutral

Kerry County Council became the first local authority in Ireland to trial a zero carbon Heavy Goods Vehicle (HGV) powered by compressed renewable gas. The truck was supplied by Scania dealers, T. Nolan and Sons in Castleisland, and fuelled using carbon neutral renewable gas from the national gas network supplied by Gas Networks Ireland.

During the two-week trial, Kerry County Council used this clean transport solution to move road salt from Co. Tipperary.

Cathaoirleach of Kerry County Council, Cllr Patrick Connor-Scarteen said:

“Meeting Ireland’s climate target is a big challenge and transport is one of the hardest sectors to decarbonise. We are delighted to do our bit in Kerry and trial trucks powered by renewable gas as a viable option to reduce our fleet emissions.”

 

While only 4% of vehicles on Ireland’s roads are classified as HGVs and buses, they account for 30% of all emissions in the road transport sector. Compressed natural gas (CNG) can reduce HGV well-to-wheel emissions by up to 23% (Cenex 2019) compared to diesel and deliver cost savings for operators of up to 35% (Cadent 2016).

However, as the volume of carbon neutral renewable gas on the national network increases into the future, hauliers and fleet operators who have made the switch to gas will increasingly reduce their carbon footprint without changing a thing.

Renewable gas is structurally identical to natural gas and compatible with the existing infrastructure, technology and vehicles. With locally supplied renewable gas now on the Irish network, gas is the affordable, proven and sustainable long-term solution for Ireland’s fleet managers and hauliers.

Gas Networks Ireland’s CNG Program Delivery Manager, Declan O’Sullivan, said:

“We are delighted that Kerry County Council has joined companies around Ireland in experiencing the emissions and cost savings associated with using both natural and renewable gas in HGVs.

“Gas Networks Ireland is on a journey to decarbonise the transport sector.  Renewable gas, which is entering the gas network today, enables carbon neutral transport, as CNG vehicles operating on natural gas today are future proofed for renewable gas.

“By delivering a network of CNG filling stations and enabling the introduction of renewable gas to the network, we are supporting hauliers and fleet operators to make a sustainable switch to a carbon neutral fuel.”

On March 1 Gas Networks Ireland announced a €2.9m CNG Vehicle Grant scheme to support the purchase of up to 400 gas-powered trucks, buses and vans and help drive a more sustainable transport sector.

The Grant will cover 20% of the difference between CNG and diesel-powered vehicles, capped at €5,000, with a maximum €60,000 available to any one applicant. Grants can be used towards the costs of vehicles registered from 2020.

The CNG Vehicle Fund is co-financed by the European Union’s TEN-T Programme under the Connecting Europe Facility as part of the Green Connect Project. Applications are now being accepted at www.gasnetworks.ie/cngvehiclegrant.