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FedEx said on Wednesday it will do its part to cut emissions from its global business, which is a big deal for a corporation as sprawling as FedEx. The company said it’s committed to become carbon-neutral by 2040 at the latest and laid out a number of projects and initiatives it will enact to meet its goal.
Chief among them is tossing any delivery vehicle that runs on fossil fuels to the curb. By 2040, FedEx said its entire ground fleet will consist of zero-emissions electric vehicles. Purchases of electric vehicles will ramp up to 50% in 2025 before all vehicle purchases move to EV in 2030. By 2040, the last of its vehicles with an engine will exit service. Going carbon-neutral doesn’t stop at filling out a fleet of electric delivery vehicles, however. FedEx already announced an initial purchase order for General Motors’ upcoming BrightDrop EV600 electric delivery vans.
The company said it will also work to transform its supply chains with “carbon-neutral shipping offerings and sustainable packaging solutions,” and promised to invest in alternative fuels for aircrafts and vehicles. Perhaps FedEx would like to know more about Porsche’s E-Fuel project. In addition to alternative fuels, the FedEx also plans to invest in more renewable energy sources for its facilities and energy management programs to cut its carbon footprint inside its operations further. Total planned investment to make all of this happen is a cool $2 billion.
All of this intertwines with a smaller part of the $2 billion planned: $100 million for Yale University to establish the Yale Center for Natural Carbon Capture. The center will work on research to capture carbon more effectively, first focused on offsetting emissions from airlines. FedEx owns and operates the largest cargo airline in the world, so this is an important investment.
FedEx proudly points out that since 2009, it pushed industry-releated emissions down 40%, but the company knows there’s work to do. Like so many other companies, including major automakers, this decade is shaping up to be a transformational one for FedEx.
