The Hague, the Netherlands, 22 April 2024 – From today, PostNL and its subsidiary Spring GDS will be adding around four million litres of HVO100 to Europe’s diesel network. It’s an important next step towards a cleaner and more sustainable logistics sector, as it ensures some 12 kilotonnes less carbon ends up in the environment every year – equivalent to almost 5000 petrol-fuelled cars driving for twelve months.* This move helps PostNL to make a significant contribution to cutting carbon emissions in the transport industry.
PostNL delivers mail and parcels on foot, by bike and by EVs as much as possible – and uses HVO100 renewable fuels for large transport vehicles where electrification is not yet feasible. HVO100 produces less toxic emissions such as NOx and particulate matter, and carbon emissions are cut by 90% compared with regular diesel fuels.
For international long-haul road transport, sustainability is even more challenging: the scope and available infrastructure for electric trucks is underdeveloped and availability of HVO100 outside of the Netherlands is very limited. That said, HVO100 can be added to Europe’s diesel network. And that’s exactly what PostNL will be doing: together with partners, it has found a way to start using HVO100 for international road transport in Europe – a unique and major step forward in the logistics industry.
Tijs Reumerman, Managing Director for PostNL’s Cross Border Solutions, reveals: “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.”
As a prominent e-commerce player in Europe, PostNL feels an urgent responsibility to contribute to a sustainable society. And it acts accordingly: every day, it 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 environment by 2040, a decade ahead of climate agreements. By upscaling sustainable fuels, it has made another big stride in achieving this goal.
*Source: 2022 Dutch road statistics from cbs.nl multiplied by emission factors from CE Delft.