A group of electric powered vehicles will become the first of their kind to feature in the Blaenau Gwent Council's fleet, it was announced this week.
Four electric powered general purpose vans are ready to be rolled out with the aim of helping reduce the council’s carbon footprint in the coming years.
Purchased with funding from the Welsh Government Energy Service, the vehicles will not only be quieter than traditional vans but are also capable of travelling up to about 140 miles between charges.
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The Maxus e Delivery 3 vans each has a 52.5Kw battery configuration which is 100% electric and uses a lithium polymer technology. They will be used by teams such as highway inspectors.
Councillor Joanna Wilkins, the council’s executive member for the environment, said she was pleased to see the roll-out of the vans, and added that there could be more low carbon vehicles being used in the future.
She said: "I am very pleased that the first electric vehicles have joined the council’s fleet and these new vans will contribute to our goal of reducing carbon emissions. As a council we are committed to tackling climate change and we will see more low carbon vehicles in use in the future."
A council spokesperson said the purchase of the vehicles was part of the council's decarbonisation plan that was set out in 2020.
They said: "This is all part of our ‘Decarbonisation Plan’ which we are making good progress with. The latest data submitted using the revised Welsh Government Net Zero method shows that the council during 2020-21 has seen a fall of 3,292 tonnes CO2e in our carbon footprint, which equates to 6%.
"This demonstrates good progress against our decarbonisation plan of 2020 to 2030 as we aim to make our full contribution to the ambition of a Net Zero Public Sector in Wales by 2030."
They added that one of the key priorities in the plan was to achieve greener and cleaner transport for council services.
They said: "This plan is one of the most important pieces of work for the council and we have agreed a very clear direction for the way forward and how we will work to achieve our ambition to become a carbon neutral organisation.
"It is pleasing to see our carbon footprint falling this year and plans are in place to reduce our energy consumption and emissions in the future. This is a global issue and it’s absolutely vital that we act now to protect our environment for the well-being of future generations and our future planning and decision making must reflect this."
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