Woolworths announces switch to electric vehicles for grocery delivery

Woolworths has announced a “supermarket first” for Australia that will change the way it delivers groceries to online shoppers.

The retailer on Thursday revealed that in the coming two months it would begin its transition to an entirely electric-powered delivery truck network by 2030.

The first of 27 new EVs would in the coming weeks start delivering groceries to customers in Sydney’s CBD, Inner West, Sutherland Shire, St George region and Eastern Suburbs.

The existing fleet is comprised of 1200 trucks which Woolworths said would all be gradually decommissioned and replaced with EVs.

“Our home delivery trucks are a familiar sight in neighbourhoods across Australia, and within the next seven years, we want to make every one of them electric, and free of fossil fuels,” Woolworths Group CEO Brad Banducci said.

“The case for a low carbon future has never been clearer and we’re backing a better tomorrow for our communities and the planet by starting the transition now.

Mr Banducci hoped Woolworths would inspire other companies to take its lead.

“Not only can we help make our suburban streets quieter and cleaner, but we hope to set an example for other businesses to support the growth of Australia’s EV industry,” he said.

The 27 new vehicles would be based in Sydney given public EV infrastructure was limited.

The trucks would be operating out of Woolworths’ Customer Fulfilment Centres (CFC) in Mascot and Caringbah, where new EV charging ports have been installed.

The EV to be used will either be manufactured by Foton Motor or SAIC Motor, which will have sufficient battery life to complete a full shift of metro deliveries on one overnight charge.

to complete daily metro home deliveries before returning to base to charge overnight.

Each vehicle will be fitted with an electric refrigeration system running off the truck’s battery.

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Elsewhere at Woolworths Group, the company operates three electric heavy rigid vehicles however technology and infrastructure to support load intensity and distances of long-haul freight is still in its infancy.

The company said it was willing to invest in public infrastructure to improve existing charging technology so both short and long haul trucks could be adequately serviced.

By 2030 Woolworths Group said it intended to reduce overall operational transport emissions by about 60 per cent and to decommission more than 3000 internal combustion engine vehicles from its fleet.

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