DHL Express: We strongly believe that the future of last mile logistics is electric

DHL Express has partnered with Fiat Professional, purchasing the first 100 units of Fiat’s new E-Ducato.  In line with the recently launched Sustainability Roadmap of DPDHL Group, DHL Express plans to have more than 14,000 electric vans in operation in Europe by 2030 to reduce their carbon emissions.

The E-Ducato is 100% electric,  has a large capacity, long life battery and a range of more than 200 km making it  well suited for last mile logistics.

“We strongly believe that the future of last mile logistics is electric”, says Alberto Nobis, CEO DHL Express Europe. “To fulfill our purpose of connecting people and improving lives, we have committed to get greener and cleaner in what we do every single day. By adding the E-Ducatos to our fleet, we take the next important step to reach our goal of electrifying the major part of our last-mile delivery fleet. With Fiat Professional, we found what we were looking for: state-of-the-art technology and powerful batteries which enables us to reach beyond 200 km with one charge to deliver our customers their Express shipments – fast and green.”

In Europe DHL Express connects consumers and businesses in more than 60 countries and territories relying on a pickup and delivery fleet that consists of around 500 electric vans, mainly operating in urban regions, and 14,000 non-electric vehicles today. Due to the high customer demand for international Express deliveries the company expects its European last-mile fleet growing to approximately 20,000 vans by 2030. To transform its sustainability strategy into reality the company is strongly committed that 60% of its fleet operate electric by end of the current decade (approximately 14,000 vehicles).

A majority are large vans used for urban and metropolitan deliveries. Together with Fiat Professional, the E-Ducato was trialed through tests under different real-world operating conditions such as very low temperatures, extreme slopes, and long distances, to check its response to the whole range of DHL usage patterns.

For Eric Laforge, Head of LCV Enlarged Europe at Stellantis, the E-Ducato project is a journey towards innovation and the future: “We’re proud that a player as important as DHL Express has chosen the E-Ducato as part of such an ambitious goal. With the E-Ducato, our task was not only to develop a sustainable product from both an economic and environmental perspective, but most of all to provide a complete mobility solution for our partners.”