Working Paper

CO2 emissions from trucks in the European Union: An analysis of the 2020 reporting period

Official certification data on the CO2 emissions of new trucks are published annually by the European Environment Agency since 2019. Based on the data reported for 2020, this report tracks the progress of manufacturers towards their 2025 emissions reduction target, assesses their performance in different technology areas, and identifies each manufacturer’s chosen technology pathway to comply with the standards.

The analysis finds that average fleet specific emissions of trucks covered by the CO2 standards decreased from 52.5 gCO2/tkm to 52.0 gCO2/tkm between 2019 and 2020. To comply with the CO2 targets det for 2025, an average annual reduction of 2.5% is required. As such, most manufacturers are currently not on track to achieve the target.

Scania remained the best performer in terms of CO2 emissions, largely due to its superior aerodynamic performance in the tractor trailer segment. IVECO had the worst performance, with the lowest level of reduction in emissions of any manufacturer, while MAN showed the greatest improvement, reducing their emissions by 2.7%. Just over 100 zero-emission trucks were reported in 2020 across all major manufacturers.

The latest reporting data also provides insights into the performance of municipal, construction and medium delivery trucks. Data for medium freight trucks reported a fuel economy range of 23.6–25.5 l/100km. Municipal and construction trucks reported a fuel-economy range of 40.9–91.9 l/100km.