Commercial Vehicle Industry New Push for Methanol Trucks in China

The head of the Chinese car company Geely has spoken out in favor of greater promotion of methanol-powered trucks. The CEO, who is well respected in China, is also known in Germany as a major shareholder in Daimler. He made his proposal for methanol in heavy goods vehicles at the annual session of the National People's Congress, which has triggered a new debate on this technological route in China's state media.

If you want to drive forward the energy transition and at the same time reduce China's independence from oil imports, you have to take methanol drives for trucks seriously as a realistic option, Li argued. Vehicles with this drive are cost-effective to operate, environmentally friendly and quick to refuel, according to his key points.

Although methanol drives have been the subject of debate in China for many years, the technology has so far remained a niche market here too. Exact statistics are difficult to find, but the total number of methanol-powered trucks sold is likely to be in the low four-digit range. That is even fewer than vehicles with fuel cells and significantly fewer than trucks from the New Energy Vehicles segment with electric or hybrid drives. More than 200,000 units of the latter were newly registered in China last year.

Diesel Trucks Still Leading the Way on China's Roads

If you look at all the figures in comparison, the sobering realization remains that none of the environmentally friendly alternatives have been able to displace diesel trucks from China's roads so far. The market penetration of NEV commercial vehicles in the overall market was 26.9 percent in China in 2025, according to the Chinese manufacturers' association CAAM. However, the rate has recently shown a clear upward trend.

Proponents of the use of methanol as a fuel are not calling for this technology to replace other alternative drive systems, but are proposing it as a third, complementary option. In certain scenarios, for example for very long distances or in very cold northern regions of China, methanol would have advantages, they say. At the NPC meeting in Beijing, where he is a member of parliament, Geely CEO Li Shufu made a concrete proposal to the Chinese Ministry of Transport to expand the refueling infrastructure for methanol along major logistics corridors in particular, the Chinese industry portal Zhongguo Qiche Bao reported. Li called for the creation of "green freight corridors".

At almost the same time, the National Energy Administration in Beijing declared green fuels to be a strategic priority for replacing crude oil at a specially convened symposium. It was reported that green fuels had recently been elevated to the level of national energy security in China for the first time.

Geely and Bosch Develop Methanol-Hydrogen Drive System

The move by the Geely boss is not altruistic. Geely's commercial vehicle division Farizon Auto is already building methanol trucks in series production and has developed a methanol-hydrogen drive system together with Bosch, which it claims achieves a thermal efficiency of 50.3 percent. Farizon CEO Fan Xianjun recently cited concrete figures at a forum of the China EV100 think tank in Beijing that speak in favor of methanol-powered trucks. One liter of methanol generates more than two kWh of electricity and the effective energy costs are less than one yuan, which corresponds to around 0.12 euros per kilowatt hour (approx. USD 0.14 per kWh). The total operating costs of a methanol truck are 32 to 52 percent lower than those of a diesel truck. The purchase price is around ten percent lower than that of a battery-electric truck and the range is around 1,500 kilometers (approx. 930 mi), the China Daily quoted from the Farizon boss's speech at the symposium.

Use Advantages

In fact, there are a number of strong arguments in favor of methanol, at least as a parallel route for reducing emissions and environmental toxins along Chinese highways and freeways. Methanol has a freezing point of minus 97.6 degrees Celsius (approx. 207.7 °F), so it practically never freezes. For the icy winters in northern China, where batteries reach their limits, this is a decisive argument. Refueling takes three to five minutes.

The expansion of the infrastructure could also be faster than with hydrogen or battery replacement. China's 120,000 existing filling stations could be expanded to include methanol dispensers with relatively little effort. An additional tank costs just 50,000 to 100,000 yuan (approx. EUR 6,200 to 12,500; USD 7,200 to 14,500), explained Fan. By comparison, a hydrogen filling station costs around twelve million yuan - 1.5 million euros - and a single battery exchange station costs eight million yuan, or around one million euros.

China is the Largest Producer and Consumer of Methanol

Shanxi province, a coal mining region in northern China, is home to one of the many pilot projects that have been carried out in China in recent years. Lingshi County in the city of Jinzhong launched such a project for methanol trucks in mining transportation in 2022. There are five methanol filling stations with a total capacity of 274 tons along National Road 108. By February 2026, 23 companies in the district had signed contracts for 116 methanol trucks, reported the local daily newspaper Shanxi Shichang Daobao.

China is the world's largest producer and consumer of methanol and controls over 60 percent of global capacity. The central government's long-term goal is the widespread use of "green methanol", which is produced from hydrogen and captured CO₂.

At the moment, however, the production costs of environmentally friendly methanol are still quite high. Without a further boost from the government, Li Shufu's proposal is likely to fizzle out. The methanol proponents' biggest friend at the moment is probably US President Donald Trump and his war against Iran. The issue of "energy security" is also currently back at the top of the to-do list in Chinese party and state leadership circles.

This became known at the Energy Authority symposium mentioned above. "For the first time, green fuels have been elevated to a strategic level that is linked to national energy security and the development of new productive forces. This is a fundamental change," the Zhongguao Qiche Bao quoted Professor Yao Chunde, who is regarded as an expert. Methanol has just been named an "indispensable part of the national energy system", said the professor. This is good news for companies such as Geely and Bosch, which have jointly invested in this technology. (se)

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