Interact Analysis says battery-electric construction equipment has a sales problem rather than an incentives problem. The market intelligence firm argues that manufacturers must change how they sell electric machines.
The argument comes as the group maintains a subdued outlook for the sector despite wider pressure on heavy industry to cut emissions. Its 2026 research forecasts battery-electric penetration in construction and road building at 10.4% by 2030 and 15.6% by 2035.
Within earthmoving, loaders are expected to lead adoption at about 19% by 2030, while excavators are forecast to reach 6.7%. Take-up remains concentrated in compact, urban and lower-utilisation applications, where overnight charging, lower noise and zero local emissions offer practical advantages.
Sales model
Alastair Hayfield, Vice President of Research at Interact Analysis, says the main constraint is not the level of public subsidy but the industry's commercial approach. Many manufacturers and dealers still rely on a sales model built around diesel machinery, even though electric equipment raises a different set of operational questions.
Those questions go beyond the machine itself. Contractors considering an electric excavator or loader must assess charging access, grid connections, site power, duty cycles, fleet deployment and energy management, according to the analysis.
As a result, the sale increasingly resembles a systems integration exercise rather than a straightforward vehicle purchase. Customers need advice on whether a machine can complete its work cycle, when it can be charged, and whether fixed charging, mobile charging or battery swapping is most suitable.
"The market will not reach meaningful scale because governments provide larger or more generous subsidies. It will scale when OEMs become significantly better at selling electric machines and they actually want to sell them," said Alastair Hayfield, Vice President of Research at Interact Analysis.
The report draws a distinction between early market interest and sustained deployment. Incentives can reduce upfront costs and encourage trial purchases, but they do not resolve the practical demands of integrating battery-powered equipment into job sites designed around diesel refuelling.
Dealer challenge
A central issue is the role of dealer networks. Dealers have traditionally sold construction equipment by focusing on machine specifications, attachments, financing and maintenance. Electric machines require a broader discussion that includes infrastructure, battery use, charging strategy and operational planning.
Simply placing electric models into dealer inventory is unlikely to create substantial demand, the analysis says. Instead, manufacturers need to train dealers to identify suitable applications, counter outdated assumptions about performance and provide support after delivery.
The firm argues that dealer development may now matter as much as, or more than, further product development. That reflects a view that available equipment has improved since the first wave of electric construction machines before the pandemic, when shorter runtime, limited charging options and poor application fit shaped negative perceptions.
Those early impressions still influence buying decisions today. More models are now available across several categories, with larger battery packs and improved charging options, but the market still carries assumptions formed around earlier products.
Use cases
The research also argues that manufacturers should target customers by use case rather than organise the opportunity mainly by geography. Buyers best suited to electric machinery often share similar operating environments, such as cities, indoor worksites, underground settings or areas with strict noise and emissions requirements.
These customer groups can be spread across a country while facing near-identical constraints. Geographically organised dealer networks are not always structured to serve them effectively, and specialist teams may be needed to support national customer cohorts.
The firm points to examples elsewhere in transport and off-highway machinery where this approach is already more established. In city buses and electric vans and trucks, consultative selling has become common, with manufacturers and utilities working with users on deployment plans and energy needs.
It also cites activity by established equipment makers. Volvo CE has combined electric equipment with charging solutions and set a target for 35% of machines sold to be fully electric by 2030. In underground mining, Epiroc and Sandvik have built expertise around charging, energy management and machine integration.
For Hayfield, that points to the next competitive divide in construction equipment. "The next phase of competition will be won by manufacturers that build consultative sales teams, develop dealer expertise, target customers by use case, and support charging and operational integration," he said.
Interact Analysis argues that the sector no longer mainly faces a technology shortfall, but a gap between the demands of electrification and the way machinery is still being marketed and sold. "The electric construction equipment market does not primarily have a technology problem. Increasingly, it has a sales problem," Hayfield said.