North American natural gas truck sales in the U.S. and Canada rose 11% year-to-date through May, according to ACT Research.

“Sales of natural gas-powered vehicles as reported by the six major truck OEMs, who account for approximately 60% of the heavy-duty natural gas market, were mixed in the March to May time period, with March dipping 3% year over year, April surging 23% compared to last April, and May flat versus a year ago,” said Steve Tam, vice-president at ACT Research.

“In the near term, after a near doubling from February to March (+96%), April and May dribbled lower -16% and -1%, respectively. Combined, sales in the three-month period extended, but decreased the year-to-date gain, with the first five months of the year outpacing the same period in 2021 by 11%.”

However, it could be electric alternative power market that is gaining more momentum, Tam suggested.  “We’re seeing an overall increase in electric charging stations, both existing and planned, but a continuing decline of total natural gas stations, particularly those planned for the future. That said, we still see articles about natural gas use in transportation, as well as discussions about hydrogen fuel cells and investments, but the overwhelming amount of trade industry headlines continues to focus on electric commercial vehicle development.”