Royal Mail has reportedly launched one of the UK’s greenest delivery offices powered entirely by renewable energy.
Harehills Delivery Office in West Yorkshire is now home to a full fleet of 19 electric Royal Mail red vans and the office uses an air source heat pump that’s estimated to save15 tonnes of natural gas a year.
Almost a quarter of Royal Mail’s delivery offices use some electric vehicles for deliveries and collections, but Harehills is one of only a few to be all-electric.
The vans are charged on-site via a purchased 100% renewable electricity supply, making them zero-emission.
The air source heat pump works by transferring heat from the outside air to the water in a central heating system and is over three times more energy efficient than a traditional gas or oil boiler.
Helen Harper, Customer Operations Manager at Harehills Delivery Office, said: “We are thrilled to be the UK’s greenest delivery office and help on Royal Mail’s journey to being Net-Zero by 2040.
“This will benefit our staff and our customers in Harehills, reducing air and noise pollution locally and making our office more energy and cost-efficient.”
Royal Mail has the lowest reported carbon emissions per parcel of any UK delivery company and aims to maintain this position in the long term.
“The company’s ‘Steps to Zero’ environment strategy set a goal of achieving Net-Zero by 2040. Royal Mail is on track to achieve a 50% reduction by 2030.”
Royal Mail recently unveiled its 7,000th electric vehicle with Future of Roads Minister Lilian Greenwood.
Celebrating the milestone the company announced that it will invest in 1,800 more electric vans and supporting charging infrastructure over the next year.
Almost half of the new vans will be built in the UK at Stellantis’s Ellesmere Port plant