Carmaker Jaguar Land Rover is to slash carbon emissions on its road freight journeys by 84% as it switches away from diesel fuel. Tony McDonough reports
Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) is to power its heavy goods vehicle (HGV) transport fleet away from fossil fuels as it looks to slash its carbon emissions.
As it renews its freight services contract with DHL for a further three years, JLR has announced its HGV fleet will transition to a combination of battery power, bio-CNG and hydrogenated vegetable oil (HVO). These will replace diesel-fuelled vehicles.
JLR, which employs more than 3,500 people at its car assembly plant in Halewood in Merseyside, says the move will make a major contribution to its efforts to become a net zero carbon business.
Bio-CNG is compressed natural gas produced from organic waste. HVO is produced by hydrotreatment of vegetable oils and or animal fats. It offers a chemical structure almost identical to regular diesel.
In collaboration with DHL, JLR claims these changes will achieve a minimum CO2 saving of 85% per HGV, on goods moving between JLR’s manufacturing centres, suppliers, and retailers in the UK.
Its fleet will also use larger 15.6 metre trailers instead of the current 13.6 metre trailers. This cuts weekly travel by more than 3,500 miles and reduces annual CO2 emissions by a further 254 tonnes.
Once fully operational, this will reduce JLR’s overall road freight emissions by 84%, saving 8,433 tonnes of carbon annually. It would require approximately 350,000 trees to absorb the equivalent volume of CO2.
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JLR is also investing £15bn to convert its range of cars to all-electric over the next few years as part of its Reimagine strategy. By 2025 a new all-electric SUV model will be rolling off the production line at Halewood.
Levent Yuksel, freight operations director at JLR, said: “Electrification and net zero emissions are central pillars of our Reimagine strategy to become a sustainable luxury business. We’re looking at every aspect of our supply chain to achieve that.
“By expanding our use of best-in class electric and alternative fuel vehicles here in the UK, we’re continuing our journey to improve air quality and reduce emissions.”