Denbighshire County Council has welcomed a new electric fleet vehicle to lower the carbon footprint of its operations.
Backed by funding from the Welsh Government Energy Service, the Kia PV5 electric van will support ‘day-to-day’ fleet services and be kept at the Bodelwyddan Fleet Depot.
Alongside its on-road tasks, the vehicle will also be used to help supply power back to the electricity grid.
According to the council, the vehicle will be plugged into the depot’s Vehicle 2 Volume Energy Yield charging point and use alternating current (AC) to enable bi-directional charging, where the van simultaneously takes power from the grid and sends power back to it.
The move is intended to reduce the carbon footprint of the site by limiting power usage and increasing energy savings.
Martin Griffiths, fleet mobility lead officer at Denbighshire County Council, said: ‘It’s great to incorporate the Kia PV5, which was procured as part of our commitments to reducing the number of fossil fuel vehicles, into this vehicle to grid charging system.
‘This initiative, linked with recently installed solar and storage batteries at the fleet depot, gives us the potential to reduce reliance on the grid system even further.’
Cllr James Elson, Lead Member for Environment and Transport, added: ‘This allows us to reduce our long-term running and maintenance cost, lower our carbon footprint and importantly reduce reliance on petrol and diesel supplies. Bringing in the Kia PV5 van to link to this smart charging system allows us to drive forward this commitment at fleet services.’
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Photo: © Denbighshire County Council.
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