Tolls in the Netherlands: owners of inefficient trucks will face increasingly harsh penalties. Volvo NL press conference: e-trucks are performing well, but scaling up is facing a power shortage.
Truck sales (commercial vehicles with a gross vehicle weight exceeding 6 tonnes) in the Netherlands fell sharply in 2025 compared to 2024: from 17,793 to 9,905 new vehicles (-44%). Volvo Trucks NL, which announced this, nevertheless calls 2025 a “good year.” Sales manager Martin Knijnenburg: “At the end of 2024, thousands of additional trucks were registered due to the introduction of zero-emission zones for new trucks. These vehicles were delivered during 2025. For 2026, we expect a normal sales level of around 12,300 trucks, in which we have a market share of 23%.”
Volvo held its annual press conference at the Volvo Truck Center in South Rotterdam, a modernized building—gas-free, clean, with modern IT, a canteen with showers for drivers, and a workshop equipped for maintenance on all types of drivetrains. The entire Volvo organization is working on a transition to 0% emissions and is on schedule. But there are concerns about the (average) customer. Transport companies are still opting en masse for diesel, and (a pressing concern) they aren’t yet concerned about the kilometer charge, which will be implemented on July 1st. This is unjustified. Those toll boxes must be in the cab and working. Otherwise, your truck will be out of service on July 1st.
Then there’s the charge. For a standard Euro 6 truck (CO2 class 1): 20.1 cents per kilometer driven. Those who buy a fuel-efficient combustion truck can receive a small discount: 18.3 cents/km (class 2) or 16.5 cents/km (class 3). In the latter case, you need an extra-efficient engine, a streamlined cabin, low-resistance tires, and/or an LNG engine. Those fuel-efficient tires don’t seem to be a success; they slip on slippery surfaces. Replacing them with regular rubber after purchase is possible, but woe betide the authorities if they check. To get the discount, you need a VECTO certificate, which is valid for six years. But installing an air horn or bull bar in the meantime is actually not allowed.
One thing is clear: those toll boxes allow the government to control the industry’s fuel mix. Volvo expects this too. Increasingly strict requirements for trucks. Higher levies for less-efficient trucks. And diesel is getting more expensive anyway because the Shell companies of this world have to buy emission certificates, which are becoming increasingly expensive and rare. Volvo’s tip: consider (bio-)LNG again. It counts as emission-free (even though it isn’t), your fall vehicle will be classified as a class 3, it’s a combustion engine that rumbles like the old days and refuels quickly, and LNG is now cheap. Many transport companies are now using up their old LNG trucks (they were out of service in 2022 when gas prices skyrocketed), but the fear of war is still in the minds of the transporters. In 2025, only 88 LNG trucks were sold in the Netherlands.
Let us shift our focus to electric. E-trucks are doing incredibly well. Batteries are lasting longer than expected. Drivers and owners are enthusiastic, with a few exceptions. Of all the e-trucks delivered in the Netherlands since 2019, only one has been traded in. An incredible success! Meanwhile, e-trucks are getting better and better, their range is increasing, and as of July 1st, you’ll pay only 3.8 cents/km in tolls. Those who invest will be helped: an additional billion euros in purchase subsidies from Dutch government is expected to be available until 2030. Experts expect enormous sales growth over the next four years. In 2025, 940 electric trucks were registered in NL. It’s growing, but not quickly.
Why? Electricity supply! Businesses want to scale up from 2 to 20 e-trucks, but they can’t get a larger connection. Volvo currently sells batteries in containers that can store up to 1000 kWh—nice, but that’s just enough to charge two long-distance e-trucks. For now, solutions must be found through local collaboration. A Lidl DC with thousands of solar panels, for example, where friendly business owners can plug in.
caption: Electric Volvo Trucks waiting for their new owners to be picked up
