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Written question asked by Ashley Fox (Conservative) on Wednesday, 17 June 2026, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 22 June 2026. It was answered by Keir Mather (Labour) on Tuesday, 23 June 2026 on behalf of the Department for Transport.

Large Goods Vehicles: Alternative Fuels and Electric Vehicles

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what comparative assessment her Department has made of the lifecycle emissions and costs of (a) battery-electric heavy goods vehicles, (b) hydrogen-powered heavy goods vehicles, (c) biomethane vehicles and (d) Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil-fuelled vehicles.

Answer

Lifecycle analysis of UK road vehicles conducted by Ricardo on behalf of the Department for Transport indicates that battery-electric heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) have the lowest lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions when compared with diesel, hydrogen fuel cell, and gas-powered HGVs.

Hydrogen fuel cell HGVs are currently projected to have slightly lower lifecycle emissions than diesel HGVs. While their emissions are expected to reduce over time as hydrogen production decarbonises, they are projected to remain higher than those of battery-electric HGVs.

The analysis did not specifically assess biomethane or Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO)-fuelled HGVs. However, it did consider diesel HGVs using blended biofuels more broadly. This found that, on a lifecycle basis, emissions from these vehicles are consistently higher than those of battery-electric HGVs, although results are sensitive to the specific biofuel mix used.

The department has not produced a comparative cost assessment of battery-electric, hydrogen-powered, biomethane, and Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil-fuelled HGVs.

The report is available here online: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/lifecycle-analysis-of-uk-road-vehicles.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
10916
Session
2026-27
Subjects
Costs Exhaust emissions Large goods vehicles Electric vehicles Alternative fuels
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk