DPD Ireland to invest €3.2 million in zero emissions fleet
DPD Ireland is investing €3.2 million to electrify its fleet over the next 12 months
The investment for the green vehicle project, named ‘ElectriCity’ will include purchasing the EVs, hiring personnel, employee training, acquiring the depots and refurbishment.
ElectriCity was launched in Dublin earlier this week at DPD Ireland’s newest location, Dublin’s Docklands Innovation Park on East Wall Road.
DPD Ireland’s new electric fleet, will serve the Dublin City Centre area, and comprises vehicles in a range of sizes from small Paxsters whose versatile size allows easy movement throughout the city streets, to the Goupils and LDVs which will carry larger parcels. The first 10 vehicles of the new electric fleet are now on the road.
ElectriCity will roll out to other urban locations throughout the country over the next three years.
Irish Environment Minister Richard Bruton said at the launch: “Transitioning to a low carbon economy will require more sustainable choices and leadership from industry.
“By investing in electrifying their fleet, DPD are putting sustainability at the heart of their business and leading the way.”
Company Chief Executive Des Travers stated that DPD will be the first parcel delivery firm to have an electric depot: “Through ElectriCity, 15 parcel delivery routes in Dublin will become all-electric routes. By the end of this year, as part of our bid to reduce our carbon output, DPD will have saved more than 20 tonnes of CO2 being emitted as a result of moving to an electric fleet,” he said.
“DPD is committed to making every parcel delivered carbon neutral, and is doing so by measuring CO2 emissions, striving to reduce them, and by offsetting the remaining ones,” he added.
DPD Ireland explained its motivation for the initiative on its website: “Our ElectriCity initiative has been inspired by our commitment to our Corporate Social Responsibility. As a carrier, we have a responsibility to the environment and to our customers. Every parcel delivered by our electric fleet is directly reducing carbon impact. We’re making Dublin cleaner, one delivery at a time!”
The Irish Government has set a target of having 10% of all vehicles on the road by 2020 electric. There were less than 4,000 electric cars in Ireland on the road at the start of 2018. Ireland has also set itself the target of ending the sale of cars powered solely by fossil fuels by 2030.
