DPD Eesti AS invests €1.5 million in electric van fleet and charging infrastructure

The logistics company DPD Eesti AS has increased its fleet by another 25 electric vans and is constructing Estonia’s largest electric vehicle charging park at its Jüri sorting centre. By 2030, the company plans to replace 95% of its current delivery vehicles with electric vans. According to Remo Kirss, CEO of DPD Eesti, electric vans have become a fully viable replacement for diesel courier vehicles.

“Investing in electric vans is capital intensive, but when one considers the total cost (price of vans, energy consumption, maintenance and repair), it is possible to achieve a cost base similar to that of diesel vans through smart management. This also requires conscious and deliberate action, including the continuous optimisation and tactical planning of delivery routes and other processes, which in turn support the more widespread utilisation of electric vans,” explained Remo Kirss, CEO of DPD Eesti.

The company is purchasing 25 Ford E-Transit electric vans, which will save 56 tons of CO2 emissions this year. “This particular electric van is known for its capacity and range, which are both greater compared to other electric vans. The van can travel an estimated 260 km on a single charge,” explained Info-Auto Ford sales manager Raiko Vaher, adding that interest in electric vans among companies is on the rise.

The company plans to purchase 100 electric vans by 2025

DPD has the largest number of electric vans in Estonia among private courier companies. With the addition of these 25 new vans, the company’s fleet now comprises nearly 50 electric vans. By 2025, the company plans to increase the number of its electric vans to 100, serving six major Estonian cities – Tallinn, Tartu, Pärnu, Rakvere, Viljandi and Jõhvi.

The higher price of electric vans and economic downturn are not slowing the company’s investments. “Our goal is to reach a point by the end of 2030 where 95% of DPD Eesti’s vans are electric. This requires consistent action, regardless of the current economic situation. For this reason, we are not only purchasing new electric vans; we are also building charging stations and updating the energy infrastructure of our buildings,” said the CEO of DPD Eesti. He added that the company continues to focus on optimising its operations, such as continuing the further development of tools for delivery route planning and optimisation.

Kirss expressed his satisfaction that the Estonian government is supporting the purchase of zero-emission vehicles this year but addressed concerns about the impact of future taxes. “In the coming years, vehicle and registration tax will be introduced for electric vehicles. It must be ensured that the introduction of vehicle taxes does not diminish the value of the purchase support,” explained Kirss, pointing out that if the vehicle tax negates the purchase support during the vehicle’s use period, the impact of the support would be disproportionately small and would not achieve its goal of encouraging companies to electrify their fleet.

The additional electric vans are used to test a new business model

“Many small businesses, including subcontractors that provide services for large logistics companies, find it difficult to keep up with the green revolution due to the size of the investments required. Therefore, we are testing a new model for DPD with the additional electric vans – we are purchasing the electric vans for our own fleet and plan to lease them to our subcontractors,” said Kirss, explaining that, under usual practice, the vans belong to the subcontractors.

He added that although testing new business models is not something that would be unusual for companies, in this case, fleet development is not the main focus of DPD’s business. “At DPD, we want to primarily focus on building package delivery infrastructure and developing a sustainable package delivery business, and I hope that the government will soon find a solution to help small businesses keep up with the green transition,” said the CEO of DPD Eesti.