TNT delivers world's largest zero emissions fleet (UK)

TNT launched the world’s largest fleet of zero emission vehicles, enabling it to reduce its carbon footprint by 1.3 million kg of CO² a year.

TNT’s new 100-strong fleet of unique battery-powered ‘Newton’ style delivery trucks will replace diesel equivalents over the next 18 months. The amount of CO² saved by the environmentally-friendly 7.5 tonne lorries will be enough to fill Wembley Stadium.

The Newton models, manufactured by Smith Electric Vehicles in Tyne and Wear, are the first ever pure electric vehicles in their class that can compete in performance terms with diesel equivalents and, at the same time, deliver a 100 pct reduction in CO² emissions and exhaust air pollutants at the point of use.

The first tranche of 50 trucks will initially operate from TNT locations in London, Basildon, Birmingham, Bradford, Bristol, Durham, Edinburgh, Enfield, Glasgow, Leeds, Leicester, Luton, Northampton, Oxford, Paisley, Preston and Wolverhampton. In addition, TNT is also piloting other Smith Electric battery powered vans and trucks in the Netherlands, with a view to rolling them out across its wider European operations.

The new fleet further consolidates TNT’s position at the head of the ‘green league’ in the transportation sector. In 2007, TNT topped the prestigious Dow Jones Sustainability Index achieving an overall rating of 91 out of a possible 100 – the highest recorded score of any company on the DJSI. The feat was all the more remarkable given the nature of TNT’s business.

TNT Express Services, in partnership with vehicle manufacturers, Smith Electric Vehicles, is unveiling the first trucks in the £7 million ‘green fleet’ at the London Wetland Centre.

The achievement followed the launch, last August, of TNT’s global environmental programme – Planet me. It seeks to engage with the company’s 161,000 employees worldwide – their families and friends, as well as contractors and suppliers – to substantially decrease their carbon footprint both at work and at home. TNT in the UK already derives up to 22 pct of its energy requirements from renewable sources and is keen to increase these levels in future.

The partnership with Smith – the world’s largest manufacturer of road-going commercial electric vehicles – is a key strand in TNT’s environmental strategy, and follows months of trials in London.

Costing just 7p per mile in electricity to run, the Newton also represents a significant saving in fuel costs and, as the most powerful electric truck ever built, the Newton has a top speed of 50mph and a 70-mile range from one single battery charge. It is designed to replace diesel trucks that operate exclusively in urban areas, thereby helping improve air quality and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Darren Kell, Chief Executive of the AIM-listed Tanfield Group plc, which owns Smith, said: “Our vehicles answer the most pressing questions facing urban road transport today, namely rising fuel costs, concern over greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution.
“TNT was the first company to deploy our commercial electric vehicles and remains a world leader with this fleet investment. Our growing relationship with TNT underlines the significant cost savings and environmental benefits that our vehicles provide for major fleet operators.”