Earlier this month, we headed to RWM & Letsrecycle Live in the NEC in Birmingham where we unveiled our first-of-its-kind hybrid vehicle.
RWM & Letsrecycle Live is one of the largest events on the calendar for the waste, resource and environmental services sector. Created to accelerate the transition to a more environmentally friendly planet, it is the perfect place to launch the latest green technology and share knowledge on innovations in the waste management sector.
Here at Keenan Recycling, we don’t just want to help our customers meet net zero, but we are on our own journey to decrease our carbon emissions, too. Our new green vehicle is the first step in our Net Zero Transition Plan, which will help us to decarbonise our transport fleet and business as a whole. By replacing fossil diesel fuel with a novel blend of hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) and hydrogen gas, we have achieved a 98.6% reduction in CO2 emissions – an achievement we are immensely proud of.
Designed in collaboration with ULEMCo – pioneers in the development of hydrogen solutions for transport fleets – our truck proved incredibly popular, drawing in visitors ranging from prospective clients and partners to journalists of key trade magazines, all of whom were keen to learn more about our innovative technology.
We even had some surprise guests, including a visit from a Slovakian minister who was someone we didn’t expect to meet but demonstrated how crucial new technologies are in the fight against climate change and resource scarcity not only in the UK, but worldwide.
One of the main uses of our truck will be to collect food waste before treating it through anaerobic digestion plants to create renewable fuel and power. The process enables us to extract economic and environmental value from food waste, rather than it being sent to landfill. This approach allows us to drive greater resource productivity and is one of the ways we are helping the UK to tackle resource issues which have been brought to the fore as a result of the energy crisis.
Our vehicle will initially run on a trial basis in Aberdeen. This will be followed by a series of actions within our comprehensive Net Zero Transition Plan to decarbonise our organisation with the ambition of commissioning a fully net zero fleet by 2030.
We must all explore alternative solutions to fossil fuels if we are serious about helping the UK on its journey to net zero, and RWM & Letsrecycle Live was the perfect place to collaborate and educate one another on our shared goals, which will help to drive positive change across the industry.
