UPS have announced an order of 10,000 purpose built electric vehicles from UK based Arrival. The initial 10,000 vehicles will be rolled out in the UK, Europe and North America from 2020 to 2024 worth hundreds of millions of euros each year. UPS have the option to purchase a further order of 10,000 vehicles during this period. UPS venture capital arm also announced an investment in Arrival of an undisclosed amount.

The vehicles will be built using Arrival’s new method of assembly using low capital, low footprint microfactories located to serve local communities and profitable from thousands of units.

Arrival first announced a partnership with UPS to develop electric vehicles in 2016 with today’s vehicle order and investment accelerating the deployment of fit for purpose electric fleets at scale. Arrival’s unique Generation 2 electric vehicles offer UPS compelling commercial and environmental benefits to make a seamless and cost effective transition to a zero emissions fleet.

Our investment and partnership with Arrival is directly aligned with UPS’s transformation strategy, led by the deployment of cutting-edge technologies.These vehicles will be among the world’s most advanced package delivery vehicles, redefining industry standards for electric, connected and intelligent vehicle solutions.

Carlton Rose, President of UPS Global Fleet Maintenance & Engineering

Arrival has developed components, sustainable materials and software to customise both vehicles and operations of commercial fleet owners. The company’s unique skateboard platforms enable the creation of vehicles in any weight, type, size and shape to match customer requirements, which are then deployed close to areas of demand across the globe in Arrival’s microfactories.

Avinash Rugoobur, Chief Strategy Officer at Arrival said “Arrival has created Generation 2 electric vehicles that are better in price, design and experience than traditional fossil fuel vehicles and existing EVs. This gives fleet managers a highly compelling commercial and environmental reason to switch to electric and will accelerate the adoption of electric technology globally. At Arrival, we believe this is amongst the most impactful areas to start the transition to a fully electric future, and our partnership with UPS will drive us both towards our shared vision of cleaner mobility.”

Juan Perez, Chief Information and Engineering Officer, UPS said “UPS continues to build an integrated fleet of electric vehicles, combined with innovative, large-scale fleet charging technology. As mega-trends like population growth, urban migration, and e-commerce continue to accelerate, we recognize the need to work with partners around the world to solve both road congestion and pollution challenges for our customers and the communities we serve. Electric vehicles form a cornerstone to our sustainable urban delivery strategies. Taking an active investment role in Arrival enables UPS to collaborate in the design and production of the world’s most advanced electric delivery vehicles.”

With over 300 million vans and trucks on the road fuelled by petrol or diesel, the commercial vehicle segment is a major contributor to transport emissions as well as the fastest growing vehicle segment. The rise of e-commerce has contributed to this increase; over the past decade the number of parcels delivered per day in NYC alone has quadrupled to 1.5 million whilst van mileage in the UK has grown 56% since 2000. The opportunity to significantly impact climate change, coupled with predictable routes and overnight depot charging, make commercial vehicles perfectly suited to seamlessly switch to electric.