How companies are adapting to carbon reduction in Europe

Edward Kulperger, Geotab’s Senior Vice President, Europe, has seen the sustainability landscape for businesses evolving in recent years. Climate change, air pollution and air quality are top concerns in Europe. London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) was expanded to its surrounding boroughs. New low-emission zones are also planned for three Eastern European cities.

At the same time, there is “greenlash” over the timing and cost of carbon reduction policies. The EU has proposed stronger CO2 emission standards for heavy-duty vehicles (HDVs), which contribute to around 25% of its total road transport emissions.

How can businesses adapt to the green economy? What role do data intelligence and technology play? We discussed the challenges and opportunities related to sustainability with Edward. 

What challenges are European companies facing related to sustainability, decarbonization and integrating electric vehicles (EVs) into fleet operations?

EDWARD KULPERGER: European companies are leaders in electric vehicle adoption. But, there are challenges that come along with electrification. Companies that operate fleets face three challenges: the purchase price of EVs, the ability to operationalize these EVs to make sure they generate revenue and ensuring the charging infrastructure is there. Despite the hurdles, there’s consensus that reducing carbon is critical — for cost, environmental and reputational benefits — and the industry is shifting this way. 

How can companies address these challenges and stay ahead of the curve on upcoming sustainability reporting requirements?

EDWARD KULPERGER: Analyzing the data is the best way to get the most of the EVs. Monitoring charging helps make sure vehicles are ready to use when needed. By connecting EVs, companies can also determine a baseline of emissions from their current fleet and report on improvement for stakeholders. Keeping fleets that include electric vehicles moving safely while generating revenue is manageable with automated reports that a fleet’s operations, sustainability officer and board can have at their disposal.

Considering current economic pressures, can businesses be sustainable and profitable?

EDWARD KULPERGER: Profitability and sustainability can co-exist. An analysis by McKinsey and Company showed that companies that improved their sustainability and ESG had better growth and financial performance than their peers, even delivering better shareholder performance.

Planning more efficient routes, lowering fuel use and reducing idling are some ways that companies can lower costs with fleet sustainability.

What role does Geotab play in the sustainable shift in Europe?

EDWARD KULPERGER: Our philosophy at Geotab is “you can only manage what you can measure.” For many, the data collection process is overwhelming. Geotab streamlines access to data insights so companies can easily understand their sustainability performance, make informed decisions and achieve their goals. We continue to invest in this area to ensure that our customers have the tools they need to reduce their CO2 emissions and become more sustainable. Think of automated emission reduction reports versus a baseline that companies may include in their sustainability initiatives and reports.

Can you share some sustainable fleet management success stories?

EDWARD KULPERGER: Milk & More, an online grocery and milk delivery company in the UK, saved 1.8 million liters of diesel and 4,920 tonnes of CO2 with EVs and vehicle monitoring and driver behavior analysis with Geotab. The great part of this story is that the fleet also lowered speeding by 21%, increased EV range by 19% and had accurate data for reporting on the fleet’s carbon emissions.

In Spain, the carbon-neutral multi-mobility company Cabify, used telematics to reduce CO2 emissions by more than 20 t a year. The ability to optimize its routes and charging supports its objective to have all trips ordered from its app be in zero-emissions vehicles by 2025 (Spain) and 2030 (Latin America).

These are great examples of household brands in Europe leveraging Geotab data in their sustainability initiatives and we believe we are just scratching the surface on our collective journey to help with the current climate crisis