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German Mail Service Rolls Out First Fleet of Electric Delivery Vehicles

Deutsche Post DHL is switching to electric vehicles for its delivery services in Bonn and the surrounding region, making the city the first location in Germany with a carbon-free vehicle concept. In an initial phase, 79 vehicles will be put into service by the end of the year in Bonn and the surrounding area for the parcel delivery and the combined mail and parcel delivery. The pilot project sees about 141 electric vehicles on the road by 2016, then resulting in decreased CO2 emissions of over 500 tons per year. Even at the start of the project, Bonn will already be host to one of the world’s largest fleet of electrically powered commercial vehicles for combined delivery. The project is supported by the German government’s electromobility support program. The CEO of Deutsche Post DHL, Frank Appel, presented the project today in Bonn with German Environment Minister Peter Altmaier, Corporate Board Member MAIL Jürgen Gerdes and the mayor of Bonn, Jürgen Nimptsch.

“This pilot project is unique worldwide and can serve as a role model for other cities and regions,” said Frank Appel. “As the world’s leading logistics company, we operate one of the world’s largest vehicle fleets. And because we see the effects of global trade on the environment, we accept responsibility: Alternative drive systems have already been in use in our fleet for years. With about 8,500 vehicles with environmentally friendly drive systems across our operations, we have one of the most efficient fleets in the sector.”

Lower environmental and noise pollution

Deutsche Post DHL is a partner in many alternative drive technology pilot projects. These involve the use of hybrid engines and vehicles powered by electricity, natural gas and biogas, as well as tests of dual fuel or aerodynamic modifications. The Group is working with all major automobile manufacturers, helping to gain important insights for the refinement of new technologies. In 2011 it also began to develop a dedicated electric vehicle; the vehicle was developed for mail and parcel delivery in cooperation with StreetScooter GmbH and institutes at the RWTH Aachen University. The “StreetScooter” is an electric vehicle specially tailored to the needs of Deutsche Post DHL. With a range of up to 120 kilometers (during the daily postal routine max. 80 km), it is ideal for use in the combined delivery of mail and parcels. An initial production run of 50 vehicles will be delivered starting in summer of 2013. 20 vehicles will be put into service in the pilot project for carbon-neutral delivery in Bonn and another 30 will be used throughout Germany to transport mail and parcels.

“The pilot project in Bonn has model character. Focusing on city deliveries, we can lower both environmental and noise pollution, and we will be able to reduce our fuel consumption. As we operate one of the largest vehicle fleets in Germany, we have a particular interest to utilize innovative and eco-friendly vehicles. I am especially pleased that we can make use of our own electric vehicle in the project. The “StreetScooter" is a tailor-made electrical car that has been specially developed for our needs in the daily mail business. 20 of these cars together with further roughly 60 other cars will be on the road of Bonn and the surrounding area starting mid-2013,” said Jürgen Gerdes, Corporate Board Member MAIL at Deutsche Post DHL.

“I’m very pleased that Bonn is playing a pioneering role. In the future, our already green city will further benefit from Deutsche Post’s carbon-neutral delivery vehicles,” said Jürgen Nimptsch, mayor of Bonn.

The Group-wide GoGreen program

The investments in alternative drive technologies and reduction of CO2 emissions are part of the Group-wide GoGreen program at Deutsche Post DHL. The program includes a specific CO2 efficiency target: The Group has set itself the goal of a 30-percent improvement by 2020 in its CO2 emissions compared with the 2007 baseline. This year the company is celebrating the achievement of two milestones as the Group-wide environmental program turns five and the company is already halfway to achieving its CO2 goal with an efficiency increase of 16 percent.

The government's activities in the field of electromobility are an important stepping-stone on the path to clean, climate-saving mobility. The programs for promoting electromobility, which began with the “Renewably Mobile” program in April 2009, were expanded in August 2011. They primarily support plans for determining environmental and climatic effects with field tests in automobile and business traffic, for coupling electromobility to renewable energy sources and their network integration, for commercial launch with ecological standards and for the field of resource availability and recycling.

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