Commercial vehicle dealer Steadplan has made economics the prime consideration after taking delivery of five Maxus eDeliver 7 electric vans for its parts delivery operation. Cost projections indicate an £18,000 saving in energy costs, demonstrating the business case for electrification being decided by running costs.
Based on a weekly 500 mile duty cycle, a conventional diesel van achieving 34 miles per gallon at £1.76 per litre would incur annual fuel costs of around £6100. By comparison, the eDeliver 7, operating at an assumed 2.3 miles per kWh and electricity at 22p per kWh, would cost approximately £2500 a year in energy; a saving of more than £3600 per vehicle.
The delivery supports the growing commercial case for electric vans in high mileage delivery applications. For Steadplan, the five vehicle delivery provides a real world demonstration of how electric vans can be deployed within a franchised commercial vehicle operation.
Hal Jackson, managing director at Steadplan, said: ‘We scrutinised the economics of electric vans for our parts operation and the calculations made for a compelling business case. The eDeliver 7 gives us the opportunity to reduce our day to day running costs while continuing to provide the service our customers expect.’
‘It tells us that a move to zero emissions is viable; it can make a positive impact on the bottom line. If we can reduce the cost of every mile we operate,’ he said. ‘We can reinvest that saving into the business and continue to deliver a competitive parts service without simply adding costs elsewhere.’
Gary Brown, commercial operations director at Harris Maxus UK, added: ‘What makes the Steadplan order particularly interesting is that this is a commercial decision driven by the economics of the operation. These vans are going straight into a franchised parts delivery environment, where mileage, uptime and operating costs are all under the microscope.
‘The eDeliver 7 demonstrates that electrification can deliver genuine financial benefits for businesses running the right duty cycle. In this case, the potential saving is significant enough to make a direct contribution to operating margins.’