CCE Invests £1.75m In Fleet Of Biomethane Trucks

Friday, July 22, 2011

Coca-Cola Enterprises Ltd (CCE) today announces that during 2011 it will invest £1.75m in a fleet of 14 dedicated biomethane heavy goods trucks, and in the necessary refuelling infrastructure to operate them.

CCE was the first in the logistics sector to trial a dedicated biomethane heavy goods truck in Great Britain. The decision to invest further follows positive results from this trial, which is featured in the new Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability (CRS) report published today. Biomethane has a much lower carbon-intensity than diesel and CCE expects the trucks to generate carbon savings of more than 50%, compared to conventional diesel.

Wendy Manning, CCE Customer Logistics Director, said: "Reducing the carbon used by our own vehicle fleet and by our 3rd party hauliers is a key objective for CCE - we put about 200,000 loads per year onto the roads of GB and so we believe we can make a real difference. All of our hopes on the environmental benefits of biomethane were easily achieved during the trial. We hope our leadership in this area and our decision to invest in a fleet of biomethane trucks inspires others to follow."

Lord Redesdale, Chairman of 'The Anaerobic Digestion and Biogas Association', said: "Coca-Cola Enterprises' backing for biomethane vehicles is hugely welcome, and demonstrates the unique benefits that this renewable fuel can bring. HGVs have traditionally been a difficult sector to decarbonise as they are not suitable for battery power, so biomethane is a great alternative to fossil diesel. Biomethane also offers excellent air quality benefits. I hope that Coca-Cola Enterprises' decision will inspire others to choose biomethane for their vehicle fleets, and that the UK will see significantly more biomethane lorries on the roads in the coming years."

CCE worked with CENEX, The Hardstaff Group and Loughborough University on the trial, with most of the testing completed at Millbrook Proving Ground. The truck used for the trial works in CCE's local distribution fleet in and around London and uses biomethane from a local landfill site. All the new trucks will be in service next year and will be fuelled by locally sourced biomethane delivered via a specialist refuelling station to be installed at CCE's Enfield site in North London.

The investment will help CCE to achieve its public commitment to cut the carbon footprint of its direct operations by 15 per cent by 2020 compared to 2007. The announcement comes as the Coca-Cola System in GB publishes its Corporate Responsibility & Sustainability Report for 2010/11.

The new report highlights positive progress in a number of areas, including:

Energy Conservation & Climate: We emitted 476,000 tonnes of carbon in 2010 - a 5.5% reduction in carbon emissions since 2007.

Water Stewardship: Our water use ratio in 2010 was 1.36 litres per litre of drink produced - an 11.7% reduction since 2007 and one of the best ratios in the Coca-Cola System worldwide.

Sustainable Packaging & Recycling: We have established 130 Recycle Zones across Great Britain - exceeding our original target of 80 Zones and collecting over 338 tonnes of recyclate since 2008.

Community: Over 41,600 students completed an educational programme at one of our three education centres in 2010. 100% of teachers who have visited would recommend the experience.

Simon Baldry, CCE Managing Director in Great Britain, said: "Corporate responsibility and sustainability are not optional extras. They are at the very heart of our business and our approach - central to everything we do and how we operate. Sustainable growth is about making more with less."

Notes to editors

Cenex

Cenex is the UK's first Centre of Excellence for low carbon and fuel cell technologies. Cenex is a delivery agency, established with support from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, to promote UK market development in low carbon and fuel cell technologies for transport applications. Cenex's principal focus is on catalysing market transformation projects linking technology providers and end users. As part of this work, it runs a number of programmes for UK national and regional government. For more information on Cenex's programmes go to: http://www.cenex.co.uk/

Hardstaff Group

With a heritage dating back some 150 years, the Hardstaff Group is today recognised as one of the principle providers of leading edge technology and innovative services to both the global and UK road transport industry. For more information go to: http://www.hardstaffgroup.co.uk/site/home

Loughborough University

Loughborough is one of the country's leading universities, with an international reputation for research that matters, excellence in teaching, strong links with industry, and unrivalled achievement in sport and its underpinning academic disciplines. For more information go to: http://www.lboro.ac.uk/

Anaerobic Digestion and Biogas Association (ADBA)

The Anaerobic Digestion and Biogas Association (ADBA) has been established to represent all businesses involved in the anaerobic digestion and biogas industries, to help remove the barriers they face and to support its members to grow their businesses. Its principal aim is to enable and facilitate the development of a mature anaerobic digestion industry in the UK within 10 years. For more information go to: http://www.adbiogas.co.uk/