New energy heavy-duty trucks are entering the stage of multidimensional collaboration between technology, scenarios, and ecology as they go global.

Although the electrification of overseas heavy-duty trucks has emerged early, its progress is relatively slow. Even in Europe, where the electrification of heavy-duty trucks started earlier, not only does its core battery supply rely on imports, but the construction speed of charging piles and battery swapping stations is far behind that of China. The sales growth of new energy heavy-duty trucks is also slower.

On the one hand, there is a lack of a complete supply chain for new energy heavy-duty truck batteries overseas, and the localization construction of core battery links is slow or stuck in a quagmire. On the other hand, the subsidy intensity and reward and punishment mechanism for new energy heavy-duty trucks vary among countries, and the electrification process of heavy-duty trucks is also different, resulting in a relatively low overall penetration rate.

Looking at the world, currently only China's penetration rate of new energy heavy-duty trucks has reached 20%, and the growth rate is fast. In order to expand their territory and seize opportunities, leading host manufacturers, battery companies, and charging pile companies have widely opened up overseas layouts.

From a rhythm perspective, in the early days, China's new energy heavy-duty trucks were more inclined to go global as whole vehicles, driving the export of heavy-duty truck batteries, and gradually winning battery orders from overseas heavy-duty truck brands.

However, some countries do not allow direct import of complete vehicles and have high requirements for tariffs, localized assembly, and low-carbon imported products.

From the perspective of scenarios, overseas mines, docks, urban distribution, and mainline logistics have a high demand for heavy-duty truck electrification under low-carbon requirements, but there are still issues with immature charging piles and battery swapping stations. If the construction of energy replenishment facilities is not addressed, it will be difficult to drive sales of new energy heavy-duty trucks.

From a technical perspective, high electricity consumption and ultra fast charging are the main targets for improving the operational efficiency of new energy heavy-duty trucks. However, high electricity prices in some developed countries and weak electricity grids in developing countries have limited the construction of new energy heavy-duty truck overcharging facilities.

Overall, the export of new energy heavy-duty trucks involves a single link such as the entire vehicle and battery, making it difficult to increase sales. Chinese companies are exploring the multi-dimensional synergy of "technology scene ecology" to tap into overseas demand.

In mid July, CATL and BHP signed a memorandum of cooperation. Both parties will fully leverage their respective advantages and cooperate in the fields of mining equipment electrification, fast charging infrastructure construction, energy storage and battery recycling, etc., to promote the electrification transformation of mining operations through integrated and panoramic solutions.

On the same day, Freddie Battery reached a memorandum of understanding with BHP Billiton. Both parties will work together to research and explore power battery system solutions and supporting flash charging infrastructure suitable for heavy mining equipment and locomotives.

Leading companies such as CATL and BYD are using breakthroughs in fast charging technology to widen the competition gap in new energy heavy-duty trucks with their respective strengths, occupy new heights, and build a more stable ecosystem for electric heavy-duty trucks going global.

By laying the foundation through core hardware components such as new energy heavy-duty trucks, batteries, charging stations, and battery swapping stations; Chinese companies are gradually improving the ecosystem of new energy heavy-duty trucks going global by delving into the needs of urban transportation, mainline logistics, mining, high emission enterprises, and other scenarios, and then developing integrated and panoramic solutions for going global.

And megawatt fast charging may be the next technological competition point for new energy heavy-duty trucks to go global. Among them, the construction of megawatt level charging for heavy trucks in Europe is at the forefront, making it one of the most promising overseas markets after China.

In 2024, the European Union raised the carbon dioxide reduction target for European truck manufacturers by 2030 from the previous 30% to 45%, which will force European truck brands to accelerate their transition to new energy. However, in 2023, a total of 2600 zero emission heavy-duty trucks will be sold in the 27 member states of the European Union, with a penetration rate of only 0.9%.

According to the plan, there will be approximately 40000 electric medium and heavy-duty trucks put into use in Europe by 2025, and this number will increase to 270000 by 2030. To achieve the 2030 goal, Europe needs to build approximately 50000 high-performance megawatt level charging stations.

In response, Germany, which has high sales of electric heavy-duty trucks, has started promoting megawatt level charging systems and plans to set up charging stations every 50 kilometers along the highway.

From the layout of top European electric heavy-duty truck brands, Volvo, MAN, Daimler (Mercedes Benz) and others are all focusing on the research and development of fast charging trucks and equipment.

As early as 2022, Mercedes Benz Trucks showcased the eActros LongHaul pure electric long-distance heavy-duty truck for the first time. At a charging station with an output power of about 1 megawatt, the mass-produced eActros LongHaul's battery can be charged from 20% to 80% in 30 minutes, and the Volvo FH Aero Electric is equipped with a 250kW DC fast charging system.

In terms of charging facilities, Daimler, TRATON Group, and Volvo Group have previously established a joint venture. The joint venture plans to install and operate high-performance charging stations in Europe for pure electric heavy-duty trucks and long-distance buses.

It is worth mentioning that Germany, as the core and central hub of European road freight transportation, has set up four operational points in Germany for the "Long Distance Truck Transport High Performance Charging" (HoLa) project, in which Daimler participates. Each operational point has two high-performance megawatt level charging system (MCS) charging points.

Compared with domestic enterprises, in addition to CATL and BYD, more and more companies have successively demonstrated multiple supercharging technologies in the new energy heavy-duty truck track, including high-voltage platforms, supercharging batteries, supercharging piles, etc., to further shorten the energy replenishment time of electric heavy-duty trucks.

With the iteration of supercharging technology, the domestic new energy heavy-duty truck team is expected to explore new demands in overseas markets.

In June, BYD announced plans to build a megawatt level flash charging network in Europe, making electric vehicle charging as convenient as refueling a gasoline car. According to the plan, BYD is expected to complete the first batch of flash charging station layout in Europe within 12 months.

In terms of charging station enterprises, the joint venture between Star Charging and Schneider Electric will provide charging infrastructure, photovoltaic inverters, AC and DC chargers, and energy storage systems to the European market.

Earlier, Star Charging signed a strategic cooperation agreement with European charging giant Hubjec, planning to jointly build and complete the construction of 100000 charging outlets. In terms of ultra fast charging technology, Star Charging has deployed a 2.88MW supercharging solution.

Shenghong Group has also released European standard MCS megawatt charging piles overseas. Its 1280kW charging host can tow up to 16 terminals and can be freely matched with MCS megawatt charging piles (15 minutes) or ordinary fast charging piles (30 minutes).

What are the opportunities for the ultra fast charging market of new energy heavy-duty trucks outside of Europe?

Australia is known as a country that sits on a mining cart and rides on a sheep's back, with the highest carrying capacity. The number of heavy-duty truck tractor grades that empower important industries such as mining, agriculture, and logistics exceeds 120000, and is growing at a rate of 5000 per year.

And the transportation industry is also one of the main sources of carbon emissions in Australia. In response, the Australian government has invested 500 million Australian dollars (approximately 310 million US dollars) through the Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) to promote decarbonization of heavy transportation, with a focus on supporting the research and development of electric truck technology and infrastructure construction.

In terms of local ultra fast charging technology layout, Australian mining truck company Fortescue has launched a new 6MW DC fast charger that can charge the 1.9MWh battery of large mining trucks in less than 30 minutes.

In Southeast Asia, Thailand's "Eastern Economic Corridor" (EEC) plan requires a commercial vehicle electrification rate of 30% by 2030 and provides tariff reductions; Vietnam provides subsidies for charging infrastructure through the "Electric Vehicle Promotion Strategy"; Indonesia, with its abundant mineral resources, also has a market demand for low-carbon and electrified mining trucks.

Overall, the global electrification process of heavy-duty trucks is still in its early stages, and the level of development varies among different countries and regions. Even the European market, which has heavy carbon emission fines, is still in the cultivation stage. Whether China's ultra fast charging technology can successfully open the door to overseas new energy heavy-duty trucks depends on how to build a comprehensive overseas pattern from products to scenarios to ecology.