A new transport industry alliance will provide free guidance to help Australian truck operators cut fuel use, assess electric trucks and plan their transition to lower-emissions fleets.
Launched at the NatRoad National Conference on the Gold Coast, FLEETLEAP brings together industry associations, energy specialists and technology providers. Its planned resources include electric truck market reports, fleet advice and demonstrations carrying real freight on Australian roads.
For Fleet Managers, the initiative aims to address two connected decisions: what can be done to reduce operating costs today, and where electric trucks could make commercial sense.
Four areas of support
FLEETLEAP will initially focus on four areas:
- An information hub with practical advice on reducing fuel consumption and emissions.
- A regular electric truck market report comparing models available in Australia and their specifications.
- Run on Less Australia, a demonstration of electric trucks operating on real routes carrying real freight.
- A fleet advice service to help operators assess their options, including electric truck suitability and transition planning.
The founding partners are Heavy Vehicle Industry Australia (HVIA), NatRoad, the Queensland Transport and Logistics Council (QTLC), the Australian Alliance for Energy Productivity (A2EP), National Transport Insurance (NTI), NewVolt, JET Charge and MOV3MENT.
Together, they represent almost 3,000 businesses across the freight, logistics and energy sectors.
Electric trucks assessed against the task
MOV3MENT Managing Director Mark Gjerek said the alliance would help operators identify opportunities suited to their businesses, including improvements to existing diesel fleets.
“Electric trucks are becoming viable for more operators so that is one focus area. But they don’t yet work everywhere, and we want businesses to understand all opportunities to reduce fuel costs and emissions that make commercial sense for them.”
Gjerek said tyre selection and aerodynamic fairings could reduce fuel costs by up to five per cent. He also pointed to differences of more than 20 per cent in fuel consumption between drivers operating the same truck.
Those figures highlight why the alliance’s scope extends beyond replacing vehicles. Driver practices and vehicle configuration remain part of the cost and emissions discussion while operators investigate electrification.
NatRoad CEO Warren Clark said smaller businesses often lacked the capacity to research changing technologies.
“Most trucking businesses are small operations. Their owners are focused on keeping trucks moving and making ends meet, not spending weeks researching new technologies,” Clark said.
Moving from trials to fleet planning
The proposed market reports and real-world demonstrations are intended to give operators more information to support vehicle assessments. Charging and the progression from a small trial to broader fleet adoption will also be part of the discussion.
NewVolt Co-Founder Rainer Knobloch said the information required changed as operators looked beyond their first electric trucks.
“Putting one or two electric trucks on the road is the easy part. Most operators need help working out how to get from there to a scaled fully electric fleet. That information just isn’t out there for Australian fleets yet.”
JET Charge CEO Tim Washington said the company’s analysis indicated a 100-vehicle heavy fleet could save around $4.5 million annually in fuel by switching to electric. That is a supplier estimate; operators will need to assess potential savings against their own fleet requirements and costs.
Coordinating industry resources
The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) has provided funding to support some of FLEETLEAP’s electric truck initiatives, including Run on Less.
HVIA CEO Todd Hacking said the alliance offered an opportunity to coordinate activity across industry and government.
“FLEETLEAP shows we can work together as an industry to not duplicate projects, and coordinate and connect our efforts across the sector and with government,” Hacking said.
FLEETLEAP describes its planned platform as independent and technology-agnostic. Its membership includes both industry bodies and commercial providers of charging, energy and advisory services.
For fleet buyers, the value will be in information that helps connect available vehicles and charging options with operational requirements and a workable business case.
The alliance plans to expand its practical tools, industry data and case studies, with other organisations across the freight supply chain invited to participate or register for updates.
