One of the UK’s largest fleet operators, Openreach, has placed an order of 270 fully electric Vivaro-e vans and 9 Corsa-e cars.
Openreach has also called for the government to legislate to make all new van and car sales to be full-electric by 2030.
Key points:
- Openreach, one of the country’s largest fleet operators, has placed an order of 270 fully electric Vivaro-e vans and 9 Corsa-e cars
- Vivaro-e available with two battery sizes comes with up to a 205-mile operational range. Corsa-e can achieve up to 209 miles on a single charge
- Openreach operates a fleet of around 27,000 vehicles in the UK
With around 27,000 vehicles, Openreach operates one of the UK’s largest fleets, and has run diesel versions of the Vauxhall vans for the past 15 years.
This comes shortly after The UK Electric Fleets Coalition, of which Openreach is a founding member, released its policy asks to the Government, asking for a target to be set for 100% of new car and van sales to be fully electric by 2030 (with exceptions for the small number of vehicles where this may not be possible).
The Vauxhall Vivaro-e is available with two battery options, with the 50kW unit achieving 143-miles of range under WLTP testing, while the 75kW unit extends the operational range to 205 miles.
“Openreach is leading the charge on the transition to electric vehicles. Our order today is an important first step as we begin to move our fleet, the second largest commercial fleet in the UK, to being fully electric.”
Clive Selley, CEO, Openreach
Supporting 100kW rapid charging, an 80% takes 30 and 45 minutes respectively. The zero-emissions Vivaro-e also comes with a payload of up to 1,226kg and can tow up to 1,000kg.
The Vauxhall Corsa-e combines the latest electric vehicle technology and convenience features. The 50kWh battery provides a zero-emissions range of up to 209 miles from a single charge and supports up to 100kW rapid charging technology – allowing for an 80 per cent charge in as little as 30 minutes.
Both vehicles come with an eight-year/100,000-mile battery warranty matched by eight years of Roadside Assistance cover from Vauxhall.
James Taylor, General Sales Director of Vauxhall, said: “Our electric vehicles help achieve significant cost savings from day one, and equally as important have no compromise in capability.
“Having one of the UK’s largest fleet operators choosing our electric vehicles shows just how confident they are in our product. We are very happy to continue our partnership with Openreach, transforming their nationwide fleet with our new electric vehicles.”
Clive Selley, Openreach CEO said: “Openreach is leading the charge on the transition to electric vehicles. Our order today is an important first step as we begin to move our fleet, the second largest commercial fleet in the UK, to being fully electric.”
Explaining the choice behind the Vauxhall Corsa-e, Chris Mullings, Operating licence & vehicle compliance manager, at Openreach, said: “Although, the Corsa-e is a compact car, it is surprisingly roomy, incredibly easy to drive and comfortable on both short and long journeys. The range is very good and with its DC charging capability it provides additional rapid charging options if ever needed.”
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About Vauxhall Motors
Vauxhall Motors started making vehicles in the UK in 1903. Today, as the oldest and most familiar of Britain’s automotive manufacturers, its philosophy is to build vehicles that are relevant to all.
Vauxhall’s two manufacturing plants in Ellesmere Port and Luton produced 120,000 cars and vans in 2019, and its sales accounted for 7.5 per cent of the UK market.
Vauxhall has been a Groupe PSA brand since 2017. By 2024, each of its models will offer an electrified version, part of the company’s PACE! plan to become sustainably profitable, global and electric. www.vauxhall.co.uk
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About Openreach
Openreach Limited is the UK’s digital network business.
It employs 35,000 people, working in every community to connect homes, schools, shops, banks, hospitals, libraries, mobile phone masts, broadcasters, governments and businesses – large and small – to the world.
Its mission is to “build the best possible network, with the highest quality service, making sure that everyone in the UK can be connected. “
It works on behalf of more than 640 communications providers like SKY, TalkTalk, Vodafone, BT and Zen, and its fibre broadband network is the biggest in the UK, passing more than 27.5m UK premises.
Over the last decade it has invested more than £14bn into its network and, at more than 185mkm – it’s now long enough to wrap around the world 4,617 times.
Today it’s building an even faster, more reliable and future-proof broadband network which will be the UK’s digital platform for decades to come.
It is making progress towards its FTTP target to reach 20m premises by mid-to-late 2020s. It has also hired 3,000 trainee engineers this past financial year to help us build that network and deliver better service across the country.
Openreach is a highly regulated, wholly owned, and independently governed division of the BT Group. More than 90% of its revenues come from services regulated by Ofcom and any company can access its products under equivalent prices, terms and conditions.
For the year ended 31 March 2020, it reported revenue of £5bn.
