Idle Giants

21/05/2026

“I’m furious about this, honestly. It’s shocking how Volvo Group can align itself with Trump in this way,” said Craig Segall, a former senior executive at the California Air Quality Authority (CARB), which has now been sued by both Volvo and Donald Trump.

If you thought Volvo undermining progress in Europe was a one-off, you’re wrong...it’s part of a pattern.

Peter Alestig and Jonas Fröberg investigation in Dagens Nyheter reveals they’ve taken the fight to the US—aligning with the Trump administration in two massive lawsuits to dismantle American climate policy.

Volvo is suing to tear up California’s Clean Truck Partnership (which they signed and praised just years ago) and backing the legal push to strip the EPA of its power to regulate greenhouse gases entirely.

https://www.dn.se/ekonomi/ab-volvo-i-kritikstorm-i-usa-hand-i-hand-med-trump/

19/05/2026

A California bill aiming to bring down the price of electric trucks has now passed three committees unanimously and is headed for a vote in the Senate.

SB 1213 proposed by Senator Eloise Gómez Reyes will lift the secrecy on truck prices, ensuring:

💰 value for taxpayers' dollars
🚒 affordability for the trucking industry so it can transition from high diesel prices
⚡ U.S. trucking keeps up with new technology
💀 deadly air pollution is tackled

More:

18/05/2026

Some truckmakers are barreling toward an all-electric future - and some are pumping the brakes.

Sierra Club analyzed the climate track records of major truckmakers Tesla, Volvo, Cummins, Daimler, Paccar and International to see which are delivering electrification progress and which are holding back fleets worldwide.

It’s no surprise to see truckmaking heavyweights Volvo, Daimler and PACCAR rank among lowest in class. These companies have made billions in profits, yet investment in making electric trucks more affordable for customers remains strikingly low. Meanwhile, companies like Tesla are bringing electric trucks to market with the performance and price point to compete. Even more concerning, laggards like Volvo and Daimler have recently stepped in to oppose federal clean air standards–moves that risk slowing progress and keeping fleets locked into volatile, high diesel costs.

The transition is happening. The question is who’s accelerating it and who’s standing in the way.

Learn more at → https://www.sierraclub.org/articles/2026/05/truck-manufacturers-who-s-delivering-climate-2026

14/05/2026

Good news: new guidelines have been released for U.S. states on the data they should collect when processing funding applications for electric trucks with the aim of lowering prices.

Why? High truck prices are a barrier to businesses wanting to pivot away from skyrocketing diesel prices and with secrecy surrounding what fleets actually pay, pricing transparency is vital.

What? The guidelines recommend that states begin collecting suggested retail prices set by truck manufacturers and diesel truck equivalent prices to “improve market transparency, and empower fleet consumer choice”.

This is an important step towards giving businesses an affordable alternative to diesel trucks.

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The guidelines recommend that states begin collecting suggested retail prices set by truck manufacturers, bulk price discounts and the diesel truck equivalent prices to “improve market transparency…

06/05/2026

Daimler Truck failed to acknowledge the problems it faces at its annual general meeting today: with profits in free fall and a massive competitive risk in the form of the new Tesla Semi the board refused to acknowledge the serious competitive risk.

Instead of stepping up on electrification, Daimler is doubling down on diesel, pushing back against clean truck rules, and backing efforts that weaken key climate policies shaping the future of and creating certainty for the industry.

🤔 If you were an investor, would you see this as a long-term strategy or a risk?

Daimler Truck faced questions at its annual general meeting today over dismal electric truck sales and competitive risk as the Tesla Semi announces mass deliveries in the U.S. and Chinese electric manufacturers enter the European market.

05/05/2026

BREAKING: 18 clean transport groups have written to truck manufacturers such as Daimler Truck and Volvo Group calling on them to get their lobby group the Truck & Engine Manufacturers Association to drop its legal action against the Endangerment Finding.

This legal move against the cornerstone policy isn't just bad for our health and our planet, it's "a poor business decision" because it removes regulatory certainty for transport businesses trying to adopt new technology and get off high diesel prices.

Read more:

The letter comes ahead of the annual general meeting of Daimler Truck, the biggest truck manufacturer in the U.S. market, where it will face investor countermotions about competitive risk from the…

30/04/2026

Daimler Trucks is undermining the Paris agreement with anti-climate lobbying activities all over the world.

On May 6th, investors will testify at the company’s AGM about how Daimler is accelerating the climate crisis by:

🧑‍⚖️Via its lobby group supporting the Trump administration’s move to roll back federal climate safeguards underlining the Paris agreement. Daimler was the only vehicle manufacturer to publicly support the repeal.

🇪🇺Pushed the EU Commission to weaken emissions targets, undermining Daimler’s own goal of scaling electric truck sales in Europe.

🐻Suing California to overturn the Clean Truck Partnership, an agreement with the California Air Resources Board meant to advance truck electrification goals regardless of federal rollbacks.

Across the U.S. and Europe, fleets are facing record-high diesel costs and are increasingly looking to switch to electric trucks.

As one of the world’s largest truck manufacturers, Daimler’s slow pace on electrification combined with efforts to weaken climate regulations, is holding back progress across the entire sector.

Investors are questioning the company’s anti-climate lobbying because this short-sighted, pro-diesel strategy risks ceding the market to new entrants and shutting the German company out of the future of freight.

Learn more at →https://idlegiants.org/news/2026/03/24/clean-transport-advocates-slam-truck-manufacturers-legal-move-against-emissions-standards-that-will-tie-u-s-trucking-to-high-diesel-prices/

16/04/2026

BREAKING: California has taken an important first step on tackling high electric truck prices, and helping the U.S. trucking industry pivot away from polluting, high-priced diesel.

What: A bill sponsored by Senator Eloise Gómez Reyes has received unanimous backing in the first of two committee votes.

How: the bill aims to drive down high electric truck prices by ensuring that when truckers want to buy electric trucks using state support, the truck manufacturers must reveal the price of the trucks. This a vital step towards making electric trucks affordable so they can be rolled out to benefit the entire community

More: https://idlegiants.org/news/2026/04/16/clean-transport-advocates-welcome-approval-of-bill-to-tackle-high-electric-truck-prices-by-california-senate-committee/

08/04/2026

Today clean air advocates and Indigenous leaders from around the world gathered outside the Volvo AGM to demand that .

Volvo claims to be a climate leader, but has abandoned their commitment to reach 50% electric truck sales by 2030. Only 2% of the trucks Volvo sells are currently electric.

“That’s not leadership,” said Mary Peveto, Executive Director of Neighbors for Clean Air. “In my community in Oregon, nearly 20,000 trucks pass my daughters’ school every single day. This is not abstract, it’s happening outside our schools and homes.”

From the Brazilian Amazon, Indigenous leaders highlighted the human cost of diesel dependence.

“Truck companies speak about zero emissions globally but here in the Amazon, we still see only diesel,” said Sila Mesquita Apurinã, Indigenous leader and general coordinator of the Amazonian working group, Rede GTA.

“This is a health and human rights issue,” said Chief Jonas Mura, Indigenous leader of the Mura people. “Respiratory illnesses are rising while companies talk about climate leadership. If zero-emission targets are real, they must reach our territories. But to date, there is not a single electric truck in the Amazon.”

Members of the Idle Giants network are calling on Volvo Group to:

🏛️Advocate for policies that will drive industry-wide transformation and market certainty, fully aligning its lobbying and policy engagement with its stated climate commitments.

❌Refrain from any efforts to roll back enabling policies and publicly reject efforts to weaken or roll back clean air and climate regulations.

🚛Prioritize electric sales and charging infrastructure investments where there is highly concentrated truck pollution and the potential for significant and immediate health benefits in all of the markets where they operate, from US ports to frontline regions like the Amazon.

Read more: https://idlegiants.org/news/2026/04/08/volvo-agm-sweden/

07/04/2026

Electric trucks are ramping up fast.

Globally, sales surged in 2024 and are already nearing that total again in just the first half of 2025. As diesel prices spike in many countries, electric trucks are quickly becoming the most feasible option for businesses looking to cut costs, reduce risk, and move away from fossil fuel dependence.

But while the transition is accelerating worldwide, legacy manufacturers are dragging their feet.

The Idle Giants report finds that companies like Daimler, Volvo, and Traton risk missing out on the mass market — even as they lobby against the very policies that would support faster adoption.

With cheaper, scaled-up competition entering from China, the question isn’t if the transition will happen — it’s who will lead, and who will be left behind.

Read the report here - https://bit.ly/41PQ4OR

07/04/2026

What will it take for Europe’s largest truck manufacturers to catch up with new truck makers and cut costs for customers?

Our new report, Behind the Curve, highlights three problems and one HUGE opportunity for , and ’s transition to electric:

💰 The pricing gap is a strategic choice, not a cost constraint. These companies are charging double the non-component costs for electric trucks vs diesel.

🔒 That strategy is locking out the majority of the market. At today’s prices, only an estimated 24% of new heavy-duty vehicle demand between now and 2030 is realistically addressable.

📉 And the cracks are already showing. They aimed high on price, but now there aren’t enough buyers at that level to support the scale they need.

🚛 The real opportunity? Manufacturers that rethink pricing to reach a broader base of operators can unlock far greater demand, accelerate scale, and strengthen their position for the transition to zero-emissions transport.

Strong truck emission standards and smart pricing create the level playing field fleets need to invest at scale without competitive disadvantage, and provide the certainty that justifies the investment.

If manufacturers truly want to increase their market share and create more demand for electric trucks, they should start pricing competitively and support the regulations that have been proven to support demand.

Read more at → https://bit.ly/41PQ4OR