A fully loaded electric heavy-duty truck waits to depart. (Photo/Xinhua)

Beijing - China's fleet of new energy heavy-duty trucks is expected to exceed 1.6 million by 2030, a transport official said Tuesday.

Cai Tuanjie, an official with the Ministry of Transport, said sales of new energy heavy-duty trucks reached about 140,000 units in the first half of 2026, jumping 78.6 percent year on year.

He attributed the "explosive growth" to a combination of policy incentives and market demand, adding that the sector has now entered a phase of rapid adoption.

To sustain the momentum, the government will roll out a series of measures to ramp up adoption. A key priority is expanding charging and battery-swapping infrastructure. Authorities plan to install more than 3,000 charging and battery-swapping stations for electric heavy-duty trucks along busy freight routes, in major metropolitan areas, and at ports, mines, factories and logistics parks.

Financial support will also be stepped up. This year, 22 billion yuan (3.24 billion U.S. dollars) in ultra-long special treasury bonds has been earmarked to subsidize the scrapping and replacement of old commercial vehicles, with priority on replacing them with new energy heavy-duty trucks.

Over the next five years, the ministry will intensify efforts to promote the shift to low-carbon energy sources in transport, accelerate the greening of transport infrastructure, and strengthen pollution control -- all as part of a broader push for a green and low-carbon transition in the transport sector, Cai added.