Australia's heavy transport sector is shifting from cautious testing to meaningful early adoption, with clear signals emerging across EV, hybrid, and hydrogen uptake. While overall volumes remain small, fleet behaviour shows the transition is accelerating as new models arrive, prices fall, and major operators commit to decarbonisation.
“We're finally seeing data points that give operators confidence,” says Hugh Rainger, Trucks & Machinery National Manager at Pickles. “The industry is moving from curiosity to genuine planning.”
EV truck adoption accelerates
According to the MOV3MENT Electric Truck Report 2025, electric truck and van sales have surged – tripling in 2023 before rising to 278 sales in 2024, surpassing hybrids for the first time. Forecasts indicate around 300 sales in 2025, pushing Australia's total electric truck parc beyond 800 vehicles.
At the same time, market choice has expanded significantly, with available EV truck brands growing from three in 2023 to twelve in 2025, easing price pressures and improving suitability across use cases.
Early used EV trucks enter the market
Fewer than 20 used EV trucks have been sold through Pickles to date, but they are no longer treated as experimental assets. Most are two to five years old with 10,000 to 150,000 kilometres, primarily in smaller rigid categories suited to urban freight.
Asian OEMs have played a major role in enabling early adoption, offering competitively priced EV trucks that allow operators to test a single vehicle without restructuring entire fleets.
“Pricing has been a massive unlock,” Rainger says. “Operators can trial an EV truck without overexposing the business.”
EV trucks sold through Pickles have averaged $56,250 – totalling over $600,000.
Hybrid trucks remain a strong interim choice
Hybrid trucks continue to outsell EVs at roughly three to one, offering immediate efficiency gains with fewer operational changes. To date, Pickles has sold 36 hybrid trucks, generating over $600,000 in sales, at an average of ~$18,000 per asset.
For many operators, hybrids represent a practical “safe space” in the transition – retaining the familiarity, servicing confidence and range flexibility of internal combustion engines, while delivering measurable emissions and fuel savings through hybrid technology.
“Hybrids give fleets breathing room,” Rainger says. “They offer the comfort of an ICE powertrain that operators understand, while allowing them to step into renewable savings and emissions reduction without overhauling infrastructure or operations.”
As charging networks expand and vehicle availability improves, hybrids are increasingly being used as a bridge strategy – enabling fleets to reduce emissions today while preparing for a full transition to electric or hydrogen in the years ahead.
Hydrogen remains longer term
Hydrogen trucks feature prominently overseas – supported by more than $4 billion in European truck-charging investment – but uptake in Australia is still several years away as infrastructure, servicing networks, and supply chains mature.
“Hydrogen is promising, but the runway is long. Pickles sold the first second-hand hydrogen truck in Australia in 2025, so we know there is demand in Australia,” Rainger notes.
Figure 3a: Electric & Hybrid Truck Sales.
Fleets strengthen their commitments
Major operators are driving momentum through public electrification goals, including Woolworths, IKEA, Australia Post, ANC Delivers, Toll, and Linfox, many supported by Australian Renewable Energy Agency's “Driving the Nation” program. These initiatives are shaping expectations for future valuations and influencing the used market.
Charging infrastructure reaches a milestone
Australia's first public electric truck charging site has opened in Geelong, with additional hubs underway in Sydney, Wollongong and Melbourne – signalling a shift from isolated depot trials to broader network-enabled operations.
What this means for the used market
As more alternative-fuel trucks reach remarketing age, Pickles anticipates:
- clearer residual value benchmarks
- growing buyer confidence as servicing capability expands
- improved transparency through future truck-specific battery testing
- increased adoption as model choice and infrastructure mature
“The next two to three years will set the pace for Australia's heavy fleet transition,” Rainger says. “Early indicators show growing buyer interest, improving operational confidence and clearer pathways to adoption.”