{
  "id": 10356919,
  "title": "Diesel wird immer teurer: Kommt nun der Durchbruch des Elektrolastwagens?",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/28/diesel-wird-immer-teurer-kommt-nun-der-durchbruch-des",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-09-28T03:30:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "NZZ Wirtschaft",
    "slug": "nzz-wirtschaft",
    "url": "https://www.nzz.ch/wirtschaft/elektrolastwagen-mercedes-co-droht-scharfe-konkurrenz-aus-china-ld.10025183"
  },
  "original_language": "de",
  "account": "Diesel prices are rising, prompting speculation about the emergence of electric last-mile delivery vehicles. Traditionally, Mercedes and Volkswagen struggled to win over electric commercial vehicle customers. However, a shift is underway. Hugelshofer, a company based in Thurgau, reduced its diesel consumption from 26,000 liters to just 9,000 liters daily, thanks to the growing use of electric last-mile delivery vehicles. Currently, out of its 250 vehicles, 85 are electric and 20 more are ordered. The company consumes 40,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity daily, equivalent to the electricity consumption of nine average Swiss households per year. Hugelshofer began electrifying its fleet five years ago, building a charging infrastructure at its headquarters that is powered by its own solar panels. The company's CEO, Martin Lörtscher, believes that energy from electricity is now significantly cheaper than diesel. Electric last-mile delivery vehicles have significantly fewer maintenance needs than diesel vehicles, and the high fuel prices are particularly tough on an industry that has always operated on thin margins. Most of the over 50,000 trucks registered in Switzerland still need to be refueled. Hugelshofer, with 30% of its trucks already electric, is an exception. According to Reto Jaussi, director of the Swiss Association of Commercial Vehicles (Astag), over 90% of Swiss trucks are still diesel. Major distributor Coop, which has one of the largest truck fleets in the country with 670 vehicles, has only 11 electric last-mile delivery vehicles. They are primarily using biodiesel, which emits significantly less CO2 than conventional diesel. Coop has already purchased 2026's annual quota of biodiesel to cushion against price fluctuations. However, they plan to acquire additional electric last-mile delivery vehicles from China, as Chinese manufacturers are not currently supplying them. The situation is similar across Europe, where most truck fleets are still made up of European manufacturers. The \"Big Five\" in Europe are Volkswagen (MAN and Scania), Mercedes, Italian producer Iveco, DAF from the Netherlands, and Volvo, which now owns Renault after merging with Chinese firm Geely. Despite years of efforts, European manufacturers have not managed to attract many customers for electric last-mile delivery vehicles in their home markets. In Germany, electric last-mile delivery vehicles only account for 4.3% of new registrations. For most transport companies, electric last-mile delivery vehicles have been too expensive. According to Daniel Schöni, whose transport company Schöni Transport has around 600 trucks, electric last-mile delivery vehicles still cost between 250,000 and 300,000 francs. New diesel trucks are available for around 100,000 francs. Chinese manufacturers offer a chance for the high price of electric last-mile delivery vehicles. Currently, one-third of trucks in China are electric, according to a recent statement by the management of Swiss industrial group Huber + Suhner, which produces cables and connectors for electric last-mile delivery vehicles. The company hopes that the electrification of European truck fleets will accelerate in the face of high diesel prices. Chinese manufacturers have already established themselves in the European market, as evidenced by the quick growth of Chinese brands in Europe, Huber + Suhner noted during an investors' conference. Huber + Suhner expects Chinese manufacturers to accelerate the market movement. The company cited the success of Chinese brands in the automotive market as evidence. Sany, a Chinese company, sold over 50,000 electric last-mile delivery vehicles in Europe, according to the group's management. While Sany's electric last-mile delivery vehicles may not match the quality of European models, the price is still significantly lower, says Martin Lörtscher, the CEO of Hugelshofer.",
  "summary": "Lange scheiterten Mercedes und Volkswagen daran, Firmen für E-Lkw zu begeistern. Jetzt bahnt sich eine Trendwende an. Doch es gibt ein bekanntes Problem: Die Konkurrenz aus China.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}