Stimulating heavy-duty transport electrification in The Netherlands

Heavy-duty transport electrification is gaining momentum, driven by climate targets and the pressing need to decarbonize freight and logistics – a need that is getting ever more urgent to address.

In a solo session on the Next Mobility Stage, Roland Ferwerda of EVRoaming Foundation/National Knowledge Platform for Charging Infrastructure (NKL) discussed the current progress in the Netherlands and highlighted some of the key initiatives and conditions needed to accelerate the deployment of charging infrastructure and support the transition to zero-emission heavy-duty transport.

NKL is an independent foundation working with government bodies, market players, grid operators, and research institutions to create an open and mature market for charging infrastructure in the Netherlands. Recent products include guidelines for public charging, charging plazas, and logistical charging, the price transparency benchmark, and the basic set of contractual agreements for AC and DC charging.

The goals of the NKL, he said, are to create knowledge products, manuals and tools, increase maturity of the sector, develop innovation programmes and share knowledge with partners, with the ultimate aim of hugely increasing the take-up of electrification across the heavy-duty transport sector.

So just how feasible is a zero emissions logistics sector? The Dutch Government has set a 2030 national target of a quarter of a million electric delivery vans, 25% of the country’s fleet, which is ambitious in itself, but considering that total stood at 41,000 in April 2025, Ferwerda and his industry leader colleagues have their work cut out to achieve that target, to say the least. However, if any country is capable of reaching it, it's the Netherlands with its extraordinary record of transportation innovation deployment.

The main tenet of Ferwerda’s presentation was the creation of an electric logistic vehicle charging network to address the challenge of charging.

An implementation strategy is urgently needed, and he says, a National Agenda Charging Infrastructure (NAL) is being created, along with a Heavy Duty Charging Living Lab to foster real-world testing and widespread implementation.

Ferwerda’s message to anyone wondering how to mirror the Dutch approach:

“DO STUFF - DON’T JUST TALK ABOUT IT.”