In the Netherlands, postal delivery service operator PostNL Holding B.V. (PostNL) has announced that it and its subsidiary Spring GDS will add around four million litres of HVO100 to Europe’s diesel network.
PostNL delivers mail and parcels on foot, by bike, and by electric vehicles (EVs) as much as possible – and uses renewable diesel (HVO100) for large transport vehicles where electrification is not yet feasible.
Renewable diesel produces less toxic emissions such as NOx and particulate matter (PM), and carbon emissions are cut by up to 90 percent compared with fossil diesel fuel.
Unique and major move forwards
According to PostNL, sustainability is even more challenging for international long-haul road transport: the scope and available infrastructure for electric trucks is underdeveloped and the availability of renewable diesel outside of the Netherlands is limited.
That said, renewable diesel can be added to Europe’s diesel network. And that’s exactly what PostNL will be doing.
Together with partners, it says that it has found a way to start using renewable diesel for international road transport in Europe – a unique and major step forward in the logistics industry.
We were looking for an innovative solution to use HVO100 and found it by setting a new standard, hoping that this initiative will inspire others. Going forward, we’ll be buying as much in biofuels as we’d need to cover all our international road transport in Europe, and this will be added to Europe’s diesel network from today. This solution reduces as much in the way of emissions as if our trucks were able to run on HVO100 directly. It’s a major move that I’m immensely proud of. Working closely with our customers, last-mile partners, and the entire logistics sector, we want to help make all of Europe’s road transport more sustainable – and this initiative enables us to set a good example. All our customers directly benefit from these reduced carbon emissions, at no extra costs, said Tijs Reumerman, Managing Director for PostNL’s Cross Border Solutions.
Hitting net zero a decade earlier
As a prominent e-commerce player in Europe, PostNL works to improve its impact across its delivery chain.
By switching to emission-free logistics, for instance, and by working with the market on circular economy solutions.
PostNL has further refined its climate strategy and submitted more ambitious carbon emission targets to the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).
It is looking to have virtually no impact on climate and the environment by 2040, a decade ahead of climate agreements. By upscaling sustainable fuels, it has made another big stride in achieving this goal.
