DHL Express said it had purchased 100 electric E-Ducato vans from Fiat to further electrify last mile deliveries in Europe.
The large vans are 100% electric with a range of about 200km (120 miles) so “very well suited for last mile logistics”, according to the freight shipper which plans to operate 14,000 in Europe by 2030 to reduce carbon emissions.
“We strongly believe that the future of last mile logistics is electric,” said Alberto Nobis, CEO of DHL Express Europe.
In Europe, the freight specialist operates in 60 countries with a fleet of around 500 electric vans, mainly operating in urban regions, and 14,000 ICE vehicles. Due to high demand for international deliveries the company expects its European last mile fleet to reach about 20,000 vans by 2030.
It want 60% of the fleet to be electric by 2030 (14,000 vehicles).
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By GlobalDataThe majority are large vans for urban and metropolitan deliveries. The E-Ducato was trialed in tests under different operating conditions such as very low temperatures, extreme slopes, and long distances, to check its response to the whole range of usage patterns.
DHL is also using cargo bikes in metropolitan and urban areas such as Barcelona, Copenhagen, Frankfurt Main and connecting its distribution facilities in the centres of London and Amsterdam by boat to reduce inner city traffic volume and CO2 emissions.
To further expand its charging network DHL Express is currently working with several specialists on a plan to "significantly" increase the number of charging points across Europe.
Overall, the group is spending EUR7bn (Opex and Capex) by 2030 to CO2 emissions. Apart from EV vehicles, funding will be used for sustainable aviation fuel and climate neutral buildings.
