Deutsche Post DHL to triple electric van fleet by 2030
Deutsche Post DHL (DPDHL) steps up the pace to decarbonise the company. The Group has earmarked seven billion euros for investments to reduce its CO2 emissions over the next ten years. Electric vehicles play a crucial role for last-mile logistics in particular.
The drive to electrify announced today will see Deutsche Post DHL Group running 60 per cent of vehicles electrically by 2030. This figure is global and looks at short distances, i.e. inner-city logistics. Effectively the Group aims to operate more than 80,000 electric vehicles within ten years. In 2020, EVs made up 18 per cent of the fleet.
The fleet electrification is part of a broader drive to reduce CO2 emissions across the Group’s operations. Deutsche Post CEO Frank Appel announced the seven billion euros to hit the targets. He defined three key areas: the zero-emission vehicle fleet as detailed above, alternative fuels for aviation (produced from renewables) and investments in climate-neutral buildings. For DHL, these are office space, mail and parcel centres, and logistics warehouses.
The bulk of the current electric delivery vehicles on the last mile consists of the Group’s own StreetScooter model. Their number is expected to grow to around 20,000 by the end of the year. Simultaneously, Deutsche Post/DHL is reportedly moving away from manufacturing and intends to sell StreetScooter or else convert the division into a service operator for the current fleet. Where they will source the new EVs to hit the new targets has not been disclosed. When announcing a delay to the end of StreetScooter last November, the parent company beheld that there was no replacement for the StreetScooter in-sight worldwide to reduce their CO2 emissions.
“As the world’s largest logistics company, it is our responsibility to lead the way and guide the logistics industry into a sustainable future. We are turning our yellow Group into a green company and making an important contribution to our planet and society,” says Frank Appel, CEO of Deutsche Post DHL Group.
A commitment to sustainability is an integral part of Deutsche Post DHL Group’s corporate culture. The Group has been operating on a target of reducing its greenhouse gas emissions to net-zero by 2050 since 2017.
In 2020, the Group’s CO2 emissions were 33 million metric tons. Without the new sustainability roadmap measures, emissions would rise to around 46 million tons in 2030, Post estimates. The concrete goal, it said, is to reduce the company’s annual CO2 emissions to below 29 million tons by 2030, “despite the expected continued strong growth in global logistics activities.”
Deutsche Post DHL employs around 570,000 people in 220 countries and territories worldwide. The Group is involved in several initiatives such as the UN Sustainable Development Goals, the Climate Group’s EV100 initiative and the Science-Based Target initiative (SBTi). The latter see Deutsche Post DHL Group pledging to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 in line with the Paris Climate Agreement.
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