CBVC Vehicle Management, a specialist in fleet management, has supplied 11 electric light commercial vans (eLCVs) and an electric pool car to Holkham Estate, supporting the estate’s commitment to reducing its environmental impact.
The new fleet of Toyota Proace City EV vans will be used for day-to-day maintenance operations by the Holkham Property Company team across the 25,000-acre estate in North Norfolk, close to Wells-next-the-Sea.
Luke Tyce, Finance Director, at Holkham, explained the significance of the switch to electric:
“Moving to electric vans across the Holkham Property Company fleet is a key project to deliver our ambition to be a carbon negative estate by 2040. Our carbon audits identified that 55% of Holkham Property Company’s direct emissions came from the diesel fleet so transitioning to electric was an excellent way to decarbonise this business. We estimate that switching to 55,000 electric miles, powered by renewable energy, will save 17.4 tonnes of CO2e each year.
“With CBVC’s help we looked at a number of electric van options to make sure that they were the right vehicles to meet our fleet’s requirements. Fleet Account Manager Julie Hayes did a great job arranging demonstrators and negotiating terms for us with the manufacturers to make sure they fitted our exact requirements.“
He added that the electric Toyota vans were proving ideal for its maintenance team, Luke saying they were quiet, easy to drive and a cost neutral alternative.
Mike Manners, Managing Director at CBVC Vehicle Management, commented:
“We’ve worked with Holkham for a number of years and are delighted to build on that relationship with the provision of these latest electric vans. The Toyota eLCVs are perfectly suited to the estate’s requirements, offering an acceptable range and the ability to charge with renewable electricity. With the minimal maintenance profile of electric vehicles, the ongoing operating cost is very low, particularly in light of what has happened to diesel prices.
“We discussed funding options with Holkham as we believe Contract Hire is not always the answer, Holkham vans operate within the estate and do a low mileage, so we looked at options that would allow them to be kept beyond a traditional lease period.“
Toyota Proace City vans offer more than 200 miles on a charge, making them ideally suited to the operational requirements of Holkham Estate.
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