New Energy World™
New Energy World™ embraces the whole energy industry as it connects and converges to address the decarbonisation challenge. It covers progress being made across the industry, from the dynamics under way to reduce emissions in oil and gas, through improvements to the efficiency of energy conversion and use, to cutting-edge initiatives in renewable and low-carbon technologies.
Walmart to purchase 4,500 electric delivery vehicles
20/7/2022
News
Walmart has signed an agreement to purchase 4,500 electric delivery vehicles from Canoo for online deliveries in the US.
The Lifestyle Delivery Vehicle’s (LDV) are expected to begin delivering online orders in 2023, as part of Walmart’s zero emissions by 2040 goal.
Walmart will be the first retailer to take delivery of Canoo’s fully electric LDV, which is engineered for last-mile high frequency stop-and-go deliveries and speedy vehicle-to-door drop-off, including grocery and food/meal delivery. Built on a proprietary multi-purpose platform, the architecture integrates the motors, battery module and other driving components.
The LDV has an optimised cabin and customised cargo space. It uses steer-by-wire technology, which reduces moving parts and cabin intrusion, resulting in more usable interior space, better driver ergonomics and the addition of a panoramic window to improve road visibility. The LDV is also reported to have the turning radius of a small passenger vehicle on a parking friendly, compact footprint, while offering the payload and cargo space of a commercial delivery vehicle. ‘This is the winning algorithm to seriously compete in the last-mile delivery race, globally,’ says Tony Aquila, Chairman and CEO of Canoo.
Advanced deliveries to refine and finalise vehicle configuration are expected to begin soon. Walmart has the option to purchase up to 10,000 LDVs in total.
New all-in-one EV test site
Meanwhile, a new EV test drive programme is to launch at Gridserve’s ‘Electric Forecourts’ in Braintree and Norwich in the UK.
The company claims the sites are the only permanent locations in the UK that enable drivers to experience electric vehicles (EVs) from multiple brands, get impartial advice, find out more about charging solutions and explore leasing offers.
It says the one-stop solution will save customers time as they can book back-to-back test drives, giving them a chance to compare and contrast different models. Drivers can book test drives at www.gridserve.com/test-drive with a range of cars available, including the Tesla Model 3 and Model Y, Polestar 2, Mercedes EQB and the latest Nissan Leaf.
Robert Buckland, Sales and Operations Director from Gridserve Car Leasing says: ‘All the best car reviewers test drive cars back-to-back before they come to their expert verdicts, and we think customers should get the same best-in-class experience. Our new test drive programme gives customers the chance to select vehicles and experience their own electric car group test.’
