The European market for electric trucks may be entering a new phase – also under the uncertainty about the price development of fossil fuels – away from pilot projects and towards a “real” infrastructure ramp-up. Measured by the number of registrations, the basis is still small. In 2025 as a whole, electrically chargeable trucks over 3.5 tonnes achieved a market share of 4.2 per cent in the EU, after 2.3 per cent in 2024.
At the same time, the market accelerated after the first CO₂ targets for heavy trucks came into force from July 2025: According to Transport & Environment, the share of e-trucks has since risen to 5.6 percent, after 3.5 percent in the previous twelve months. The level is still low, but the direction is clear: the market is no longer limited by a lack of vehicle availability alone, but increasingly by infrastructure, energy costs and grid access.
Investor Resource Allocation Considerations Begin
For investors, it is precisely this market phase that is relevant. This is because infrastructure investments are typically particularly attractive when demand becomes politically and industrially visible, but physical expansion is still scarce. The International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) expects the EU-27 to need 22 to 28 gigawatts of installed charging capacity for battery-electric trucks by 2030. From this, the organization derives a need for 150,000 to 175,000 private and 60,000 to 80,000 public charging points; in addition, 4,000 to 5,300 megawatt charging points (MCS) are needed. This would no longer be a niche market, but an infrastructure program on an industrial scale. For institutional investors, this means that the topic is no longer “venture”, but it is still early enough to secure scarce assets from the broad competitive phase.
Three segments for truck charging infrastructure
Firstly, public corridor charging along the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) axes – i.e. locations on motorways, ports, intermodal terminals and border crossings.
Secondly, depot and fleet solutions for freight forwarders, retail logistics, own account transport and courier, express and parcel service networks (CEP).
Third, hybrid locations that combine public demand with contracted fleet utilization. The last type in particular is likely to be particularly attractive from an investor’s point of view because it mitigates the classic early-stage question of occupancy. The ICCT assumes that by 2030 the power requirement will be divided almost equally between public and private charging infrastructure. This speaks against a pure motorway thesis and in favour of a differentiated asset universe with different risk profiles.
Charging parks for trucks not comparable to those for passenger cars
In contrast to the passenger car market, charging infrastructure in the truck sector is not a standardised roll-out business. A truck charging park is not simply a larger fast-charging station, but a logistical infrastructure object. What is needed are passable bays, sufficient manoeuvring areas, resilient access roads, 24/7 availability, driver stay and usually a higher degree of operational reliability than in the passenger car segment. In addition, loading capacity in freight transport is directly linked to the productivity of the asset: loading windows must harmonize with driving and rest times. The ICCT notes that the 350 kW charging points commonly used for passenger cars can cover more than half of the public fast-charging demand for long-haul trucks, but at the same time several thousand megawatt chargers (MCS) will be required by 2030. Milence, a joint venture between Daimler Truck, the TRATON GROUP, and the Volvo Group, has already commissioned the first publicly available MCS locations in Europe in 2025, demonstrating that the market segment is technically emerging from the pre-series phase.
The demand base is developing very unevenly from region to region. At the end of 2025, The European Alternative Fuels Observatory (EAFO) recorded 937 truck charging locations across Europe; of these, 313 locations already had at least one charging point of 350 kilowatts or more, while 624 locations were still below this threshold. Germany led the way with 275 locations, followed by Sweden with 129 and the Netherlands with 119. The market picture is thus divided into two parts: there are already the first geographical clusters with critical mass, but no comprehensive European infrastructure standard yet. For institutional capital, this asymmetry is not a disadvantage, but the core of the investment case: returns often arise where the regulated expansion path and real scarcity are visible at the same time.
Total Cost of Ownership as a decision criterion for freight forwarders
However, vehicle economy remains decisive for the utilization of a charging park. A freight forwarder electrifies its fleet not because of the technology, but when the total cost of ownership (TCO) becomes sustainable. This is precisely where the picture in 2025 is not yet homogeneous. The European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) explicitly refers to inadequate infrastructure, high energy costs and in some cases still unfavorable TCO conditions as slowing factors. At the same time, Transport & Environment points out that CO₂-based truck tolls, European Emissions Trading System 2 pricing, and incentives for renewable electricity in public and private charging can significantly improve the profitability of electric trucks.
Translated into investment logic, this means that demand will arise most quickly where high annual mileage, plannable routes and cheap electricity procurement come together – i.e. more in regional networks, hub traffic and depot-related applications than in completely open long-distance spot transport.
Secure grid connection as an important asset criterion
The key technical question of a truck charging park is therefore less the charger itself than the grid connection. Several 350 kW points quickly lift a site into the multi-megawatt range and MCS capability exacerbates this effect even more. The ICCT concludes that the European requirements from the AIFR Regulation are likely to cover only 50 to 70 percent of public charging demand in 2030; along the TEN-T core network, coverage is higher, but significantly lower in area. For investors, this is key: The economic moat of an asset often lies not in the hardware, but in the secure grid connection, approvals and lead time. Those who address these bottlenecks early create barriers to entry that are almost impossible to replicate in later market phases.
Regulatory development path
The market is additionally protected by regulation. According to the National Centre for Charging Infrastructure, the EU regulation AFIR requires publicly accessible truck charging locations with at least 2,800 kilowatts of site capacity and at least two charging points of 350 kW each on 50 percent of the TEN-T core network by the end of 2027. By the end of 2030, locations with 3,600 kW at intervals of 60 kilometres are to be available along the core network. Such minimum requirements do not guarantee an individual return. But they reduce the strategic risk of the market as a whole: capital does not invest in an unregulated segment of hope, but in a politically defined expansion path with industrial backing. For investors, it is precisely this combination of regulation, demand path and asset shortage that is often decisive.
The timing question remains. For institutional investors, investing makes sense if three conditions are met at the same time: first, a sufficiently resilient demand logic, second, visible regulatory support, and third, still limited competition for high-quality locations. This constellation is currently in place. The number of trucks is increasing, albeit at a small level. The infrastructure is still thin. And the biggest bottlenecks – grid, permit, location – are structurally scarce. This means that the market is less like the early passenger car charging business with high fragmentation and strong price competition, but rather classic network infrastructures with local Scarcity Premium. The segment is particularly investable where traffic density, network availability and contractually visible capacity utilization come together.
In conclusion, it can be said that European e-charging infrastructure for trucks is a scalable investment case for institutional investors – but only if investments are made selectively.
Attractive locations are those that combine strategic corridor access, secure connected load, a resilient demand profile and, ideally, additional energy industry optimization opportunities. The market is thus less a game of hardware margins than of location quality, network rights and load security. This is precisely where its appeal for long-term capital lies: the added value is not primarily created in the device, but in access to a scarce infrastructure node that will be in high demand in the future.
