On  March 31, EU ministers met to discuss the global shortage of around 11million barrels of oil per day. At the meeting, European Commissioner Dan Jørgensen urged nations to outline measures to reduce the use of oil and gas, particularly in transportation. The effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz has caused panic within Europe. As a result, the EU has been advised to consider biofuels as an alternative to fossil fuels.

Unlike America, Europe is struggling to find sources of oil that are either not in Russia nor the Middle East. As a result the European Union has been advised to look again at Biofuels.

The EU’s Renewable Energy Directive requires member states to achieve a 29% share of renewable energy in transport by 2030, including a sub-target for renewable hydrogen and advanced biofuels of 5.5%.

Source: MSN: Read The Article

PSR Analysis: The real question is can biofuels actually replace fossil fuels? While it is possible to grow high energy crops on some poor-quality land, it is generally viewed that biofuels are a niche option at best.    PSR

Guy Youngs is Forecast & Adoption Lead at Power Systems Research

China has also committed to installing 10,000 photovoltaic systems for isolated homes and critical facilities. China is also investing in Cuba’s wind farms.

Source: Clean Technica Read The Article

PSR Analysis: What makes this article interesting is one factor –President Trump has blocked Cuba’s access to cheap Venezuelan oil, and he has forced them to consider alternative sources of power. This comes just at the time when the US has attacked Iran and Iran has forced oil prices to grow dramatically. It turns out that while President Trump has pulled the USA back from renewables, he may just have given renewable and EVs the biggest growth boost it has ever had.   PSR

Guy Youngs is Forecast & Adoption Lead at Power Systems Research

Refining battery metals in the US and Europe has been difficult to scale up because the more traditional refineries often require billions of dollars in upfront investment, take a long time to get all the necessary permits and require huge amounts of material in order to be profitable.

Nth Cycle says that its process is different and can be operated without the constraints of traditional refineries and is profitable at much smaller scales.

Source: Electrek: Read The Article

PSR Analysis: The world of battery recycling is developing at a fast rate but the real significance of this is the scale – despite being profitable at smaller scales, this deal is for thousands of tons of material.   PSR

Guy Youngs is Forecast & Adoption Lead at Power Systems Research

There seems to be a never ending cycle of oil-related problems. In 2008, supply, demand and speculation caused a massive price hike. In 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine causing another oil price hike. And now, the US-Israeli attack on Iran has driven yet another price hike. The fundamental problem is that transportation remains totally dependent on oil, and oil prices are set by a very volatile global market.

This whole problem has encouraged motorists to do the math, and the result is staggering. Motorists simply cannot afford not to buy an EV as their next vehicle. This article goes into the math behind this.

Source: Electrek: Read The Article

PSR Analysis: EVs cut across this problem, and it doesn’t impact them because electric prices are set nationally not by a very volatile global market and they are a fraction of gas prices. Electric prices are also a way out of oil dependence.      PSR

Guy Youngs is Forecast & Adoption Lead at Power Systems Research

Volvo Construction Equipment has officially transitioned the A30 Electric and A40 Electric articulated haulers into serial production at its Braås site in Sweden. Originally unveiled as prototypes at bauma 2025, these machines represent the largest electric articulated haulers currently available on the global market, boasting payloads of 29 and 39 tons, respectively.

Designed for high-utilization environments like large-scale infrastructure projects and mining, the haulers offer up to six hours of operation on a single charge, depending on the application. The first production units are scheduled for delivery to customers in the United Kingdom and Norway this month.

This move solidifies Volvo’s commitment to lead the heavy-duty transition, moving beyond compact machines into the most energy-intensive segments of the construction industry.

Source: Volvo  Read The Article

PSR Analysis. The serial production of 40-ton electric haulers is a “proof of concept” for the entire European construction sector. For years, the industry argued that electrification was only viable for small excavators or urban projects; Volvo has now shattered that ceiling.

For competitors like Komatsu and Caterpillar, the pressure is now on to move their European fleets toward serial production rather than limited pilot programs. For fleet operators, the “total cost of ownership” (TCO) equation is shifting; while the upfront cost remains high, the reduction in fuel costs and maintenance for such high-utilization machines makes them increasingly attractive.

This is particularly relevant given the Industrial Accelerator Act’s focus on green procurement, as public infrastructure projects in Scandinavia and the UK are now likely to mandate zero-emission machinery of this scale.   PSR

Emiliano Marzoli is Manager of European Operations at Power Systems Research

Simultaneously, KTM’s corporate structure shifted as Stephan Reiff (formerly of BMW Motorrad) officially assumed the role of Chief Commercial Officer on April 1. On the community front, KTM confirmed that the 2026 KTM Europe Adventure Rally in Gubbio, Italy, has reached near-capacity registrations.

These developments signal a move away from the “overproduction” issues of 2025 toward a leaner, premium-focused strategy centered on Austrian-made electric innovation and high-margin “Orange Family” events.

Sources: Bajaj, AutoEvolution, KTM   Read The Article, Read The Article, Read The Article

PSR Analysis.  The stabilization of KTM through Bajaj’s $642.72$ million USD (€550 million) refinancing and the Mattighofen hub expansion is a critical “rescue story” for the European motorcycle industry. By localizing the production of high-performance electric components like the Freeride E’s drivetrain in Austria, KTM is positioning itself to benefit from the EU Industrial Accelerator Act’s “Made in EU” incentives.

For the broader industry, KTM’s aggressive pivot to a “premium-core” strategy—divesting from bicycles and non-core sports cars—highlights a trend of consolidation among European motorcycle manufacturers facing pressure from Asian imports.

The successful registration of the Adventure Rally also underscores the rising importance of “experiential retail”; for players like BMW and Triumph, the message is clear: survival in the 2026 market depends as much on building a gated community of riders as it does on the technical specs of the bikes.

The integration of Indian financial capital with Austrian engineering creates a formidable competitor. KTM now possesses the scale of Bajaj Auto for global sourcing and the high-end R&D capability of Mattighofen for the European premium market. This “hybrid” model allows KTM to weather economic volatility better than it did as a standalone entity in 2024.

As the Freeride E hits dealerships this month, it serves as a laboratory for the next generation of electric street bikes. If KTM can successfully migrate this technology to a “Duke E” or “SMC E” platform by 2027, it will likely dominate the urban European motorcycle segment, particularly as cities tighten noise and emission regulations. For your newsletter, the key takeaway is that KTM has successfully “right-sized” and is now the leading European edge for electric off-road technology.  PSR

Emiliano Marzoli is Manager of European Operations at Power Systems Research

The April 2026 issue of the Alternative Power Report produced by Power Systems Research and authored by Guy Youngs, features articles on problems with biofuels in Europe and how drivers consider EVs again. Read these articles and more in the April 2026 issue of Alternative Power Report today. PSR

Guy Youngs is Forecast and Technology Adoption Lead at Power Systems Research

Ashok Leyland’s move to develop and assemble its own battery packs marks one of its most strategically significant announcements in recent years. As India transitions toward a cleaner, multi-fuel commercial mobility ecosystem, this decision places the company at the center of the country’s electric commercial vehicle (ECV) transformation. The implications extend across technology, cost structure, competitive positioning, and long-term industry dominance.

At the core, battery packs account for 35–45% of an electric vehicle’s total cost, making them the single most influential factor in pricing and margins. By internalizing battery pack development, Ashok Leyland is aiming to break its dependence on third-party suppliers, reduce bill-of-materials cost, and secure tighter control over the EV value chain. This is crucial as global cell prices fluctuate and supply chains remain vulnerable to geopolitical shifts. In-house pack assembly gives the company cost stability, greater design flexibility, and freedom to optimize packs specifically for Indian duty cycles—ranging from stop-and-go urban e-buses to long-haul e-LCVs and future heavy-duty platforms.

Source: Ashok Leyland   Read The Article

The timing of this move is equally important. India’s e-bus demand is set to surge under government-led procurement models, while private fleet operators in logistics, e-commerce, and urban distribution are accelerating their shift to electric vehicles to reduce total cost of ownership.

With the ability to design and customize battery packs, Ashok Leyland can deliver superior range, enhanced thermal management, and higher safety standards—key parameters that fleet buyers evaluate while choosing OEM partners. This directly strengthens the company’s position against emerging EV-focused rivals as well as traditional competitors who are still dependent on external battery suppliers.

Furthermore, battery pack capability aligns with Ashok Leyland’s broader multi-fuel road map. The commercial vehicle market is evolving into a portfolio of fuels—CNG, LNG, electric, hydrogen ICE, and eventually hydrogen fuel cells. Among these, electrification will dominate the urban and medium-duty segments due to regulatory push, operational viability, and falling battery costs. Owning battery pack manufacturing ensures Ashok Leyland is structurally ready for this shift, while also enabling cross-application synergies for future hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles, which too require battery-buffering systems.

This decision also future-proofs supply-chain resilience. As global OEMs increasingly localize components in India to meet Production Linked Incentive (PLI) norms and reduce import dependence, Ashok Leyland’s move places it ahead of the localization curve. It enhances long-term scalability, protects margins, and positions the company as a technology-integrated OEM rather than a traditional vehicle assembler.

In summary, Ashok Leyland’s entry into battery pack manufacturing is far more than an operational development—it is a forward-looking strategic investment that strengthens technological depth, enhances cost competitiveness, and secures leadership in India’s fast-evolving electric CV landscape.  PSR

Aditya Kondejkar is Research Analyst – South Asia Operations for Power Systems Research

Study shows PHEVs exceed government estimates. There have been several studies that suggest that hybrid electric vehicles (also called PHEVs) are simply not the great environment saver that the marketing people are suggesting. A new study by the Fraunhofer Institute shows that on average, PHEVs use more than three times as much fuel as government estimates suggest.

The study is highly credible as it was based around on-board fuel consumption monitoring data from a massive 981,035 vehicles across Europe.

A gap of over 300% is severe and makes it hard for the EU to regulate something when the estimated numbers are so wildly different from reality. The EU is aware of this problem, and is taking some measures to fix it

Source: Electrek: Read The Article

PSR Analysis: For some time now, people have been arguing that PHEVs are not the planet saver that the marketing people are suggesting it is. This is just more data to confirm this.  PSR

Guy Youngs is Forecast and Technology Adoption Lead at Power Systems Research

But that’s easy, I hear you say, its Australia and its sunny. Well, how about cold and snowy Canada? Transport Canada’s Zero-Emission Trucking Program, recently published a study which monitored over than 200 thousand kms (124,224 miles) of diesel and electric truck data over a year of operations in the Montreal-area. There findings were staggering with nearly $200k of savings per electric truck

Meanwhile in Europe, Trailer Dynamics in Germany has a different idea. Instead of electrifying the tractor, electrify the semi-trailer, so if you use an electric truck, great, this boosts your range, but if you are using a diesel truck, the e-Trailer can reduce fuel costs considerably. The benefits of a self-powered, battery-electric semi-trailer go beyond reducing CO₂ emissions as the technology also promises significant efficiency gains, which is music to the ears of fleet managers

Source: PV Magazine: Read The Article

PSR Analysis: This article is one of many that give a clear indication of where trucking (especially reefers) will go in the future, but the key isn’t really the cost saving, the efficiency improvements or the de-carbonization, but rather insurance. In the trucking world, if you have a 100k cargo of say, pharmaceuticals, the insurance company has historically insisted on a second diesel ICE to power the reefer unit alone. This is why this real life test of refrigerated goods in Australia’s heat, is very telling.    PSR