It’s a fascinating and stressful time for professionals in clean transportation, fleet management, OEMs, and partners providing fueling and charging infrastructures. The ACT Expo conference was in a very good position to put some perspective on all of it during a time of supply chain disruption and confusion over what’s going to happen in Washington, D.C., in vehicle emission policies; and what tariffs might mean for production and new vehicle prices.
It was also a rich opportunity for fleet professionals to check out the latest in technology, fleet-focused education and training, and networking opportunities. The National Association of Fleet Administrators (NAFA) held its 2025 Institute & Expo in Long Beach, Calif., while ACT Expo 2025 took place not far away at the Anaheim Convention Center. Fleet operators were able to attend both events at no extra cost. These are the two largest fleet events in the country, and offered attendees a seamless experience.
Stakeholders in clean transportation have a lot of questions about what will happen this year as Congress reconsiders its relationship with California. That took shape when the U.S. House of Representatives voted to end three federal waivers that let California set strict vehicle pollution standards.
On Wednesday, the House voted against two waivers involving heavy trucking, and on Thursday, it voted to reverse a state rule that would require all new vehicles in the state to be zero-emission by 2035. The U.S. Senate is now discussing what to do, after two nonpartisan government entities advised Congress that it can’t actually reverse those waivers through the mechanism it’s using, according to NPR. The Senate has to decide whether it will follow that guidance, or to go along with the House.
Grants and project funding: ACT Expo attendees also had questions over what will happen with budget cuts coming from the White House, and whether grants from the U.S. Departments of Energy and Transportation, and the Environmental Protection Agency, will be available. Representatives at the Clean Cities display table were not able to comment on this situation.
Panel speakers, and those displaying their vehicles and technology on the exhibit floor, do advise fleets and partner stakeholder to look into other funding sources — through states like California, Washington, Colorado, Illinois, New York, and North Carolina — and through other entities such as utility companies, regional governing agencies, and nonprofit organizations with programs supporting clean transportation and energy.
Product launches at conference: Slate Auto debuted its battery-electric vehicle, which can be a truck, a sports utility vehicle (SUV), or even a cargo van, during ACT Expo in the exhibit hall. Slate says that it can configure the vehicle “for whatever your fleet needs” at a very low price. The company says that it’s worked on removing unnecessary parts to reduce costs and increase reliability, and to offer a 1,400-pound payload capability. It’s been backed by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, and it can be priced at less than $20,000 when applying federal tax incentives.
Some of the highlights demonstrated at the outdoor displays, ride and drive, and in the exhibit hall included: a Harbinger plug-in hybrid electric van, which it calls a first-of-its-kind medium-duty vehicle designed for delivery vans, box trucks, and emergency and disaster response vehicles, among others; Rizon, an all-electric brand from Daimler Truck, showed off its cab carrier; an Isuzu electric truck for Penske; a Waste Management truck trailer for its CNG/RNG trucks; a Tesla Semi with the WattEv logo; and the Chevrolet BrightDrop 400 electric van.
Dan Priestley, senior manager, semi truck engineering at Tesla, said that his company plans full-scale production of its Semi next year. Tesla is constructing a 1.7 million sq.-ft. factory in Reno, Nev. which will be able to produce 50,000 units per year in 2026. The company also introduced a 1.2 MW charging solution that is shared with its passenger car business. Priestley also said that Tesla is investing in a 46-site public charging network in the U.S. Work is in progress and represents more than 300-MW-capable charging posts.
Mack came to the expo with a brand-new Mack Pioneer Class 8 semi. The truckmaker also said that a 300 mile electric Mack truck will coming out next year.
Peterbilt showcased a broad range of zero emission solutions, including the Next-Generation Model 579EV and the All-New Model 567EV, which it says is the industry’s first electric heavy duty conventional vocational truck. Peterbilt’s next-generation model 579EV designed for drayage and regional haul applications was also shown, featuring updated styling, the new PACCAR ePowertrain and the latest in safety and connectivity technology.
Kenworth introduced two new battery-electric trucks. The T880E, a Class 8 vocational electric truck is coming to the North American truck market. The Next Generation T680E is designed for short and regional haul, LTL and drayage operations.
Hyundai Motor Company introduced the new XCIENT Fuel Cell Class-8 heavy-duty truck. Hyundai highlights successful XCIENT Fuel Cell truck fleet operations through NorCAL ZERO in California and HTWO Logistics at HMGMA, underscoring its leading role in the global hydrogen energy transition
Greenlane opened its inaugural commercial EV charging site in Colton, Calif., on Tuesday with Nevoya as its first fleet customer. The team showcased an end-to-end charging reservation demo—from booking a session in their fleet portal to starting the charge onsite—all streamed live from the brand-new charging center. On Thursday, Greenlane CEO Patrick Macdonald-King took the stage alongside industry leaders from Volvo, Einride, Daimler Truck North America, and CharIN for the “Charging at Scale: How public and private infrastructure will power future EV fleets” panel discussion.
Zeem Solutions, which operates what it calls perhaps the best optimized, shared EV charging site, had updates on its EV truck charging site at Port of Long Beach. Last September, the Inglewood-based company began work at the port site. The 2.7-acre location – near the Long Beach International Gateway Bridge – will have 84 fast-charging stations with a 15-megawatt capacity, with plans to scale up that power capacity as demand grows.
Miami-based Nopetro Energy, which converts methane from landfills and wastewater into CNG/RNG, reducing emissions and fueling cleaner transportation through public-private partnerships, was present talk about the latest developments in RNG.
Ford and General Motors were in the exhibit hall showing their relatively new programs aimed at fleets transitioning over to electric vehicles. Ford Pro team members and members of Ford’s Commercial Vehicle engineering teams work with fleet clients to maximize their productivity. They might talk about he latest updates related to chassis, design and body installation for electric trucks (Ford F-150 Lightning) and vans (Ford E-Transit) and in ICE versions.
GM Envolve works with fleet leaders on staying ahead of change. That includes through GM’s electric, fuel cell, and software platforms, along with consultative support and complete fleet services. GM works with clients who might be interested in integrating in with HYDROTEC, OnStar, and its BrightDrop Zevo 400 and 600 electric vans — which were on display at its booth. Another resource discussed is GM Energy, which offers bi-directional charging with a generator available in its trucks.
Speakers had a lot to say: Salim Youssefzadeh, CEO and co-founder of WattEV, spoke on a panel about electric vehicles being deployed at ports such as the major hub at the Long Beach and Los Angeles Ports, where WattEV is setting up heavy-duty truck fast chargers. WattEV has also been adding electric trucks to its fleet as part of contracts with freight transport companies serving the ports. Executives from Amazon Freight, IMC Logistics, and Unilever, also discussed how their companies are working with transport partners to hit sustainability targets tied to cost effectiveness, and transparent reporting.
They all agreed that finding “diesel parity” is a goal to be met to bring in full support from supply chain partners, with electric trucks, fuel cell trucks, and renewable natural gas (RNG) being considered. Grants, mainly from the state of California, are being utilized, with the hope that OEM prices will come down over time for clean vehicles. A recent spike in hydrogen prices has put more pressure on making fuel cell vehicles work, said Jim Gillis, President, Pacific Region at IMC Logistics.
Volvo Group Chief Technology Officer Lars Stenqvist was one of the keynote speakers. He said his company is confident it can hit its net-zero target by 2040 through a “dual-technology strategy” centered on battery-electric vehicles, hydrogen-powered trucks, but without abandoning the combustion engine.
Mathias Carlbaum, President and CEO of International, kicked off a speaker many by discussing the role of digital integration in transforming fleet operations and improving safety and efficiency. He said that the recent launch of International’s Class 8 electric RH eTruck provides solid evidence of the company’s forward momentum.
PG&E CEO Patti Poppe was the closing keynote speaker. While urgent matters like climate change and the growing threat of wildfires are present, Poppe made strong arguments on why decarbonizing the state’s energy and transportation systems is both possible and economically viable.
State of Sustainable Fleets: A presentation was made by event planner TRC Companies about its State of Sustainable Fleets report, now in its sixth year. The 2025 Market Brief comes from a robust fleet survey capturing input on clean vehicles and infrastructure from nearly 200 fleet operators and decision-makers. It taps into a rich data source covering a broad range of real-world fleets in every stage of technology adoption.
One bright light shined on the audience is that despite the upheaval in Washington, D.C., over federal funding uncertainty, more than $13.5 billion in funding remains
available through state and local programs to support zero-emission (ZE) and near-zero-emission (NZE) projects. With the Trump administration and the House of Representatives withdrawing the industry’s strongest mandates by the State of California in response to federal actions, it’s made it necessary for fleets and clean transportation stakeholders to take a broad approach to finding resources.
Early Executive Orders (EOs) from President Trump Trump clarified the White House’s intent to roll back many Biden-era and earlier policies, including Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) waivers that allow California and opt-in states to enforce stringent emissions regulations for light-duty and commercial vehicles. Legal actions are sure to follow but it has drawn out a wave of uncertainty on emissions regulations at the federal level — and how California and states that have adopted its zero emission vehicle policy will be impacted.
The presentation gave status updates on three federally funded projects:
Program: DOE Hydrogen Hubs (H2Hubs)
Allocation: $7,000,000,000
Status: Not fully allocated; phase one allocation complete
Risk: Current phase at lower risk; future phases at risk.
Program: DOT Charging and Fueling Infrastructure (CFI)
Allocation: $2,500,000,000
Status: Not fully allocated; next round scheduled for Spring 2025
Risk: Contracted awardees at lower risk; future funding round at higher risk
Program: DOT Reduction of Truck Emissions at Port Facilities
Allocation: $400,000,000
Status: Not fully allocated; next round scheduled for Spring2025
Risk: Contracted awardees at lower risk; future funding rounds at higher risk
As for alternative fuels and powertrains, 39% of fleets participating in the annual survey say they use renewable diesel.
Most of the natural gas used for transportation in the U.S. in 2023 came from renewable natural gas, according to U.S. Energy Information Administration.
Battery electric vehicles continue to show continued market development. Public and private investments have accelerated the growth of dedicated shared fleet charging hubs. TRC said that expects the number of open and active medium-duty (MD) and HD charging ports within these hubs to nearly triple in the U.S. in 2025.
Support continues for hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, with initiatives link the Hydrogen Hubs investment program — which could be on hold now for additional funding to be challenged into the project. In 2024, 75 new fuel cell transit buses entered service, up from 29 in 2023, and recent funding awards suggest that growth in this sector will continue.
