Electric vs LPG Forklift: Running Costs for Melbourne Warehouses
Updated 2026-08-15
THE SHORT ANSWER
For indoor warehouse work, a lithium electric forklift typically costs $3,000–$5,000 a year in energy on single-shift use, versus much higher fuel bills for LPG and $18,000–$22,000 for diesel. Electric also eliminates exhaust emissions indoors, cuts servicing (no engine oil, filters, radiator), and runs quieter — the case for LPG now largely reduces to all-day outdoor work and no charging window.
The market has already voted
Walk any new Melbourne distribution centre: the counterbalance fleet is electric, and the new orders are lithium. LPG held on for years because lead-acid batteries were genuinely annoying — watering, battery rooms, 8-hour charges, capacity fade in the cold. Lithium removed most of those objections, and the running-cost gap did the rest.
Annual running cost, single-shift indicative figures
| Lithium electric | LPG | Diesel | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Energy / fuel per year | $3,000 – $5,000 | mid five figures over diesel-electric gap | $18,000 – $22,000 |
| Routine servicing | $500 – $1,500 | higher (engine service items) | $3,500 – $6,000 |
| Indoor air quality | zero exhaust | CO + fumes — ventilation required | not suitable indoors |
| Noise | low | engine noise | loud |
Figures are indicative Australian market ranges (reviewed August 2026) for a 2–3 t counterbalance on single-shift duty; your tariffs, bottle contracts and hours move the numbers. The ordering never changes: electric energy costs are a fraction of combustion fuel, and there are simply fewer parts to service — no engine oil, spark plugs, filters, radiator, or exhaust system.
Where LPG still earns its keep
Honesty matters here — LPG remains defensible when:
- The machine works outdoors all day on rough or wet surfaces
- There is genuinely no charging window and bottle-swap-and-go is operationally simpler
- You’re running occasional heavy outdoor lifts where an old LPG unit’s capital cost is trivially low
For mixed indoor/outdoor on sealed surfaces — the standard Melbourne warehouse-plus-yard pattern — modern electric counterbalances with solid tyres handle it, and the indoor air-quality rules tilt the decision further.
The safety and compliance angle
Running combustion forklifts indoors requires managing carbon monoxide exposure and ventilation under Victorian OHS requirements. Electric removes the exhaust question entirely. One genuine compliance note for any forklift, any fuel: in Victoria, operators need a High Risk Work Licence (LF class), and the machine must suit the load, site and operator — that’s the fit assessment we run before quoting.
Switching from LPG: what changes on your site
- Power supply — you’ll need a charging point (single vs three-phase guide)
- A charging corner — dedicated, separated area per WorkSafe lithium guidance; no battery room needed
- Refuelling habits — bottle swaps disappear; opportunity charging during breaks replaces them
- The bill — the LPG account stops, the electricity bill barely notices
Most sites describe the switch as anticlimactic. That’s the point.