News item | 23-06-2022 | 08:15
There will be many more extra clean trucks on the road this year than expected. And that also applies to clean machines on the construction site. State Secretary Heijnen is allocating almost 34 million euros for this. That money will be added to this year’s subsidy budgets, which were immediately used up on the first day because entrepreneurs submitted so many good applications. This means that there are now many great plans that can be implemented immediately with this money. Heijnen wrote this to the House of Representatives today.
Three birds with one stone
Heijnen: “I think this is great news. On the first day that it was possible, it turned out that entrepreneurs are very enthusiastic about driving an electric truck with a subsidy. Or switch to an electric crane, roller or other clean construction equipment. It touched my heart to have to reject so many entrepreneurs with good plans. Fortunately that is not necessary now. That also means short-term gains for the climate and against nitrogen. In short: three birds with one stone.”
Budget increased
Heijnen increases the subsidy budget for the clean trucks scheme by 11.5 million. Initially, 13.5 million was earmarked for this year. In total, about 450 extra trucks that drive cleanly will be added this year with a subsidy; electric or on hydrogen. That means a tripling of the current number on the road.
An extra 22.2 million will be allocated this year for the use of construction machines that run cleanly, on electricity or hydrogen. Initially, 8.3 million was earmarked for this. The money will go towards the purchase of new machines, or the conversion of existing machines that currently run on diesel. This includes tracked excavators, concrete mixers, battery packs for the construction site and mobile cranes.
Make meters now
What plays a role in the choice to use this money now is that this will in any case lead to climate and nitrogen gains in the short term. For both trucks and construction machines, the good applications are already on the desk at the Netherlands Enterprise Agency. Entrepreneurs could submit their applications here from 9 May. It is not possible to submit new applications for this year.
The government believes it is important to take steps now where possible. Especially for construction machines, they often last for many years. This means that in the long run we will enjoy every construction machine that now runs quietly and cleanly on the construction site.
Using extra money now means that there will be less subsidy budget in the coming years. Heijnen is currently investigating the possibilities of further supplementing that budget for trucks, in accordance with the wishes of the House of Representatives. There will be several hundreds of millions of euros for construction machinery in the coming years. There too, the cabinet is keeping a close eye on it to ensure that there are enough resources to make a major step towards making construction more sustainable.