DP World, the global logistics provider, announced this week it would help truck operators at two key UK logistics hubs access renewable, low-carbon fuels.
The trial programme, launched at the London Gateway and Southampton logistics hubs, will help around 500 trucks to transition from diesel to hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO), an alternative, renewable fuel with up to 90% fewer emissions than traditional fossil fuels. HVO, which usually costs about 15% more than traditional fuels, will be offered to trucks at the same price as diesel thanks to the DP World programme, making a low-carbon transition possible with no upfront investment.
The programme will see DP World partner with Certas Energy and New Era Fuels, two UK fuel providers, to supply eligible truck operators with up to 5,000 litres of HVO. All trucks that visit the London Gateway or Southampton more than 90 times over 3 months with fully laden import or export containers will be eligible for the programme. If all eligible trucking companies participate, DP World estimates savings of up to 30,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide each year, as much as 5,000 UK households.
HVO is gaining traction as an attractive alternative to fossil fuels to power cars and trucks. Unlike hydrogen or LPG, it is a “drop-in fuel,” meaning engines can process it in the same way as diesel, without any need for specialised technology or adaptations.
This makes it a low-cost way to power the green transition, as switching to HVO requires no upfront investment and provides an immediate benefit – unlike, for example, electric vehicles, which provide better emissions gains in the long run but at a great short-term environmental and monetary cost.
The trucking industry has long been one of the most emissions-intensive parts of global supply chains, responsible for 5% of all greenhouse gas emissions globally. However, reducing emissions for trucking companies is not easy: electric trucks are becoming more common, but are difficult to adapt to long-haul journeys because of limited battery capacity, which would require either long recharging stops or reduced space for payload to accommodate large batteries. Biofuels like HVO are a way to greatly reduce emissions at virtually no upfront cost, while the industry awaits a wider transition to fully electric trucks.
