Wienerberger target low-carbon business travel
Company announces transition to a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) leased company car fleet
SEEKING to reduce the company’s climate change impact, Wienerberger UK have announced their transition to a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) leased company car fleet.
According to research, transport in general was responsible for 22% of the UK’s total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in 2019, 13% of which arose from car travel.
To help tackle these GHG emissions, in December 2020 Wienerberger slashed the carbon emission limit for their company car fleet to 75gCO2e/km. The business expects one-third of its leased company car fleet to become PHEVs in 2021, with full transition achieved by 2023.
With a full fleet of PHEVs, Wienerberger will reduce their CO2 emissions by up to 500 tonnes/year, compared with 2019 levels. This is equivalent to heating 210 UK homes for a year or 746 passenger journeys by aeroplane from London to New York.
Finance director Paul Stevenson said: ‘Moving to a fleet of PHEVs visibly communicates Wienerberger’s commitment to tackling climate change, and at the same time helps employees reduce the carbon impact of their personal travel too.’
In order to support employee’s transition to low-carbon travel, both at work and at home, Wienerberger are offering a bursary of up to £559 to cover the installation of an EV charging point at each company car drivers’ residence.
The company is also encouraging employees to pair their PHEV with a domestic renewable energy tariff, to maximize the positive impact.
Going forward, Wienerberger intend to install EV charging points across their factories and offices, making use of the renewable electricity tariff which has been in place at the company’s brick and roof tile factories and head office since 2017.
