Deutsche Post DHL is road testing 12 new Renault Kangoo Z.E. electric vehicles for combineddeliveries in Germany.
As part of the “E-mobility in commuter traffic” pilot project, the vehicles will transportletters and small packages in the Rhine-Ruhr area until the end of 2011.
By using these electric vehicles, Deutsche Post DHL and the car maker Renault are trialingthe operational suitability of electric vehicles for commercial fleet operations. RWE EffizienzGmbH is responsible for supplying vehicle power via electric charging points.
The focus is particularly on battery development, road handling and the safety of thevirtually silent vehicles, especially in inner city areas and pedestrian zones. For combinedtransport, the vehicles must, for example, be able to cope with heavy stop-start traffic andachieve a given range.
“Due to its electric drive train, the Renault Kangoo Z.E. is quiet and fuel-free, and also100 per cent CO2 neutral as it uses green power. This will help reduce air and noise pollution ininner city areas and pedestrian zones. The joint pilot project with Renault is an important part ofour Group-wide GoGreen environmental protection programme, which includes the practical testing anduse of alternative vehicles,” said Joachim Wessels, Member of the Mail Divisional Board at DeutschePost DHL.
The Renault vehicles are powered by a fully electric drive train with Li-Ion batteries. Therange of up to 160 kilometers for a fully loaded vehicle is sufficient for use as a combineddelivery vehicle. At the delivery centers in the Rhine-Ruhr area, charging stations have beeninstalled where the batteries can be recharged overnight.
“The range of our compact Kangoo Z.E. electric transporter is perfectly suited to DeutschePost DHL’s operational range. We are very pleased that as a result of this collaboration, manypeople in the Rhineland and the Ruhr area will see for themselves how well suited to everyday useelectric mobility already is,” commented Beatrice Degand, Electric Vehicle Project Manager atRenault Deutschland AG.
As well as Renault and Deutsche Post DHL, RWE is also involved in the project and will takecare of energy supply across all the trial areas. Dr. Stephan Hell from the E-Mobility Developmentdivision at RWE Effizienz GmbH added: “Today we have already set up a network of about 340 publicelectric charging points together with our partners in North Rhine Westphalia. That is a goodinfrastructure for the everyday use of electric vehicles, and an important pre-requisite for theiracceptance.”
Alongside Renault, Deutsche Post DHL is also collaborating with various car makers on aseries of tests, in order to gain important experience of using renewable fuels and alternativevehicle drive trains by using the vehicles in everyday operations.
Today, Deutsche Post DHL is already operating around 3,000 vehicles with hybrid or electricdrive trains, as well as alternative fuels and engine-specific electronic and aerodynamicmodifications. Its activities in the area of electric mobility should in the medium term help leadto electric vehicles becoming production-ready in the small transporter and transporter commercialvehicle classes.
