AstraZeneca commits to all electric vehicle fleet by 2030
The global pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca is the latest company to commit to switching its entire fleet to electric vehicles (EVs) by 2030.
The British-Swedish company has joined The Climate Group’s EV100 initiative, which encourages businesses across the world to switch to EVs.
The announcement makes AstraZeneca the first pharmaceutical company to join the EV100 initiative and the 50th  global business overall.
The Cambridge-based company will now make all its 16,000 business vehicles across Europe, the US and Japan electric within the next 11 years.
Helen Clarkson, CEO of The Climate Group, said: ‘When a pharmaceutical company says we need to go electric to help everyone breathe clean air, every business with a fleet needs to listen.
‘This is a great example of a company addressing the global climate and air pollution crisis. As the first global healthcare company to flip its fleet through EV100, and the 50th large business to do so, AstraZeneca is setting a new benchmark in the drive to electric vehicles.’
AstraZeneca’s R&D site in Mölndal, Sweden. The global pharmaceutical giant has become the first pharma company to join the EV100 initiative.
AstraZeneca’s sign-up to the EV100 highlights the rapidly growing trend of multinational businesses looking to embrace electric vehicles.
The EV100 initiative now represents companies which employ a total of 2.8 million people and command over $900bn in annual turnover.
Energy giants Centrica and SSE, outsourcing company Mitie, and the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) are just a few of the companies to have signed up to the EV100 initiative in recent months.
To support its transition to electric vehicles, AstraZeneca will now look to expand the EV charging infrastructure available at its office sites.
It is expected that the company’s switch to EVs will save it over 80,000 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) every year from 2030.
AstraZeneca is already a member of The Climate Group’s RE100 initiative, which commits it to using 100% renewable electricity by 2020 in Europe and the US and globally by 2025.
Katarina Ageborg, AstraZeneca’s EVP, sustainability and chief compliance officer said: ‘Recognising the link between a healthy environment and human health, we believe that by investing in electric vehicles and emissions-reduction initiatives, we can help reduce the burden of respiratory diseases and other air pollution-related conditions. Environmental stewardship will prevent disease as well as protect the planet for future generations.
The Climate Group has also announced that the UK government has become the first government worldwide to act as an international ambassador for the EV100 initiative.
Through the commitment, the government will encourage all large UK businesses to electrify their fleets, using its embassies to represent the initiative on a global scale.
Photo Credit – Erik031