DHL Supply Chain establishes HVO fuelling across UK

The logistics provider said it will now be able to assess operational processes and the performance of the fuel. It will also be adding fuel bunkers across its network in 2024, increasing its use of HVO fuel to over 24m litres.

DHL said that transitioning to HVO fuel will deliver 80-90% carbon savings compared to diesel. The company expects to save an estimated 15,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e).

“The installation of HVO fuel across our bunkered sites represents a critical moment in our multi-fuel decarbonisation strategy,” said Saul Resnick, CEO, DHL Supply Chain UK and Ireland. “HVO improves our service to customers by introducing a low-carbon renewable alternative fuel with minimal disruption.”

HVO is made from biomass, including cooking oils and waste from food manufacturing. The advantage of the alternative fuel is that it can be used in existing engines without affecting operational performance and negating the need for fleet or infrastructure reinvestment.

The roll-out of HVO fuel in the UK is part of DHL’s Green Transport Policy, which was announced last year. The policy aims to establish a global standard on the most suitable green alternative per market. DHL said it is investing around €200m in alternative technologies and fuels to reduce close to 300,000 tons of CO2 emissions in the next three years in partnership with customers. Last year it started using eight bio-LNG trucks for transport services to Aston Martin, reducing carbon emissions by around 800 tonnes per year.

Sustainable services at JLR
Last year JLR (formerly Jaguar Land Rover) extended its existing freight services contract with DHL Supply Chain UK for three years with a new sustainability focus that sees DHL converting its entire UK core fleet in the JLR operation to alternative fuels by April 2024. JLR is also switching to alternative fuels in its own UK fleet. Combined, these initiatives will reduce carbon emissions by 84%, saving over 8,000 tonnes of CO2e per year. 

JLR’s project is part of its Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) commitment to reduce its scope 1 and 2 emissions by 46% and scope 3 emissions by 54% by 2030, as part of the company’s Reimagine strategy. 

In the forthcoming spring edition of Automotive Logistics magazine Levent Yuksel, freight operations director at JLR, says that cost was a factor in weighing up the pros and cons of using either HVO or compressed natural gas (CNG) on JLR’s converted core fleet.

“There is this additional cost to pay for the CNG equipment because you need to make modifications to the tractor unit, but HVO doesn’t call for that capital investment as it can be adaptable for a diesel tractor unit. We need to put these elements into the equation,” he explained. “We also need to consider if we have the charging and refuelling facilities because we don’t want our equipment to be stalled somewhere because they can’t refuel or recharge.”