Portugal lags Europe on electric heavy freight trucks

ZERO and UVE warn that Portugal remains far behind other European countries in electrifying heavy freight vehicles, even as electric heavy passenger vehicles have advanced strongly. In the first half of 2026, only 0.5% of new heavy freight trucks over 12 tonnes sold in Portugal were electric, against a 2.3% EU average and much higher shares in the Netherlands, Denmark and Austria. The organisations blame the lack of direct national purchase support, insufficient fast-charging infrastructure for trucks, and limited fiscal incentives compared with other EU countries. They call for integrated incentives, dedicated charging hubs and decentralised energy storage to accelerate the shift.