Mitie has welcomed the 4,000th electric vehicle (EV), a Volkswagen ID Buzz, to its fleet. This significant milestone underscores Mitie’s commitment to creating a zero emission fleet. Over the past year alone, Mitie has added over 1,000 new EVs, solidifying its position as one of the largest electric fleets in the UK.
The vehicle was unveiled by Matt Western, MP for Warwick and Leamington at National Grid House. Matt serves as the Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on EVs and was able to hear how Mitie is decarbonising Britain through sustainable transport, from deploying electric vehicles to its colleagues and customers, to installing thousands of EV charge points across the nation.
The 4,000th EV is one of 650 new Volkswagen ID Buzz’s ordered by Mitie. These long-range electric vehicles will cater to a wide range of Mitie colleagues, including cleaning operatives, landscaping colleagues, and mobile engineers traveling between sites. The vehicle is part of a new multi-million pound partnership between Mitie and National Grid, with Mitie delivering facilities management services at over 260 National Grid sites.
With 60%1 of its fleet now electric, Mitie is on track to meet its target of electrifying its fleet by the end of 2025. This ambitious journey started in 2020 with the launch of Plan Zero, a wider initiative aimed at reaching net zero operations in the same timeframe. A large component contributing to Mitie reaching this objective has been implementing a robust EV roadmap, replacing Internal Combustion Engine vehicles with EVs across its contracts and own estate.
Along with deploying electric vehicles, Mitie is also ensuring the UK has access to the clean, renewable energy it needs to power the EV revolution, having installed over 2,800 charge points across its colleagues’ homes and customer sites. It is also supporting many of its customers, including National Grid, with their own EV strategies, from rolling out EV’s across fleets, through to the installation and upkeep of charging infrastructure.
Heidi Thompson, Group Fleet Manager, Mitie, said:
“Reaching our 4,000th EV is a major milestone on our journey to reaching a zero-emission fleet by the end of 2025. The vehicle joining our fleet at National Grid will serve a crucial role for our cleaning operatives on the contract. It was a pleasure to be joined by the local MP, Matt Western, who in his role as the Chair of the APPG on EVs is driving forward the importance of fleet electrification, championing UK businesses to embrace EV strategies.”
Matt Western, MP for Warwick and Leamington, and Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Electric Vehicles, said:
“It was great to have the opportunity to welcome Mitie’s 4,000th electric vehicle to its fleet and hear from the team about the important work they are doing. It is seriously impressive how Mitie are leading the way with one of the largest electric fleets in the UK. Businesses have a significant role in reducing transport emissions and I encourage all businesses to look at decarbonising their fleets.”
Notes to editors
1 As of 27 February 2024
About Mitie
Founded in 1987, Mitie's job is to look after places where Britain works, and it is the leading facilities management company in the UK. We offer a range of services to the public sector through our Central Government & Defence and Communities (Healthcare, Education, Campus & Critical and Care & Custody) divisions. Our Technical Services (Engineering Services, Energy, Water and Real Estate Services) and Business Services (Security, Cleaning, Landscapes, Spain and Waste) divisions serve private sector customers in areas such as Financial & Professional Services, Industrials, Retail and Transport, and increasingly the public sector.
Mitie employs 64,000 people. We take care of our customers' people and buildings, through the 'Science of Service', and we are transforming facilities to be more flexible, safe, sustainable, and attractive to all. Mitie continues to execute its technology-led strategy and in the past twelve months has received multiple awards and validation for its ambitious near and long-term science-based emissions reduction targets from the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi). Find out more at www.mitie.com.
