Sainsbury’s announces first store has switched to fully electric delivery fleet

Sainsbury’s today announced that it has successfully transitioned its first store to a 100 per cent electric delivery fleet, extending zero emission deliveries to over 145,000 households in south London.

The supermarket giant confirmed that its Nine Elms London superstore is now operating a fleet of 12 fully electric vans with both the vehicle and fridge units powered by electricity.

The store makes over 2,000 deliveries on average each week with the fleet covering around 1,760 miles. As such, the switch to an electric fleet is set to save 57 tonnes of carbon emissions a year, while also delivering significant reductions in air and noise pollution.

Sainsbury’s hailed the move as a major milestone on its journey to powering a fully electric fleet at all its stores by 2035, in line with its wide goal to deliver net zero emissions operations by the same date.

“We’re always looking at how we can use the latest technology to best serve our customers, whilst also doing the right thing for the planet,” said Patrick Dunne, director of property and procurement at Sainsbury’s. “We’re thrilled to have launched a fully electric fleet in our Nine Elms superstore and we hope our customers will be delighted to learn that their groceries are being delivered with zero emissions, helping to reduce the environmental impact of their online shopping. This is just the first step for us, as we have committed to rolling out electric vans across the country to all our stores by 2035.”

The news comes on the same day as the UK Platform for Battery Electric Trucking, a group which include the John Lewis Partnership, Logistics UK, Scania, and National Grid, called on the government to adopt a “zero-emissions vehicles mandates” for lorries similar to that planned for cars.

Richard Hebditch, UK director of NGO Transport and Environment, which convened the electric trucking panel, urged the government to come forward with policies that can support its target of ending the sale of fossil fuelled HGVs from 2040.

Check out our “Taste Me, Don’t Waste Me” article.