A troubled hybrid electric firetruck uses more fuel than expected and is estimated to have been in use for just 14 weeks in its two-year warranty period.
The ACT Emergency Services Agency has found the $1.6 million Rosenbauer truck is consuming more diesel than anticipated, with new documents released under freedom of information laws revealing it would actually use nearly a quarter of the fuel of a normal firetruck.
"Expectation of this appliance was that during operation it would rarely rely on the diesel-powered Energy Backup Unit," a fuel consumption report said.
The opposition said the government should be demanding ratepayers' money back and the truck had been a failure.
The truck used 1564 litres of diesel between June 2023 and July 2025. The report said the majority of fuel consumption had been during training and estimated the truck would use 2328 litres a year on average during normal operations.
"When compared to average annual fuel consumption of the remaining operational ACTFR Pumper fleet of 9952 [litres a year], Pumper 10's fuel consumption is relatively low at only 23.4 per cent," the report said.
"However, as this is a Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV), fuel consumption was anticipated to be significantly lower than this."
The truck has been off the road for lengthy periods since it arrived in the ACT in 2023, including several months in 2025 waiting for a replacement battery to be shipped from Europe.
The agency's workshop manager estimated the truck had been in operation for 14 weeks of its two-year warranty period, as of April 2025, the freedom-of-information documents showed.
The United Firefighters Union also previously raised concerns about the loud noise of the truck, which was making it hard for staff to hear safety instructions.
The Canberra Liberals' emergency services spokeswoman, Deborah Morris, who requested the documents, said everything about the electric firetruck had been a failure.
"It was never properly tested in Australian conditions. It has spent more time off the road than on it. It has serious safety flaws that put firefighters and their lifesaving work at risk. And it burns more fuel than promised," she said.
"If Labor truly cared, it would end the circus, admit this experiment has failed, and demand ACT ratepayers get their money back."
An agency spokesperson said the truck's diesel-powered energy backup unit was designed to operate automatically when the vehicle battery level dropped below 20 per cent charge.
"During the training phase, where more than 80 per cent of operational firefighters were trained in using the vehicle, all components of the truck were operated more frequently and for longer periods than would occur under normal operational conditions, ensuring staff were fully trained and confident in the vehicle's functionality and operation," the spokesperson said.
"This included frequent manual activation of the [energy backup] for training purposes. As a result, fuel consumption during this period is higher than typical and should not be considered representative of anticipated annual usage under normal operational conditions."
The fuel consumption report concluded the firetruck's energy backup unit was being "manually engaged unnecessarily" when the vehicle's battery was still relatively full, resulting in higher fuel consumption.
The truck was also travelling across the ACT when operational for several months in 2025, despite being based at Acton in order to service the city area.
"This may be contributing to the frequency of manual and automatic [energy backup unit] activations," the report read.
"Ensuring this vehicle is primarily tasked for CBD response will limit likelihood of [energy backup unit] activation due to extensive travel between taskings."
Emergency Services Agency staff recommended ACT Fire and Rescue procedures be reviewed to minimise the manual activation of the backup unit, as well the preparation of further reviews when the truck had completed six months and one year in service.
The warranty for the firetruck is set to expire in December 2026, after being extended twice from June 2025.
Previously released emails between the ACT Emergency Services Agency and the truck's manufacturer, Rosenbauer, showed repeated complaints of faults with the firetruck which had created a "political nightmare".
