Fleet takes delivery of 100 VW ID Buzz Cargo electric vans

A commercial fleet operator has made the switch to all-electric vehicles (EVs) with the world’s largest handover of Volkswagen ID Buzz Cargo electric vans.  

Planning to save some 300 tonnes of CO2 per year by making the switch to an electric fleet, Helion took delivery of the electric vans from Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles (VWCV) at its Attisholz site in Switzerland.

Helion’s CEO, Noah Heynen, said: “With the conversion of our commercial vehicle fleet to electric power, we are also driving forward the energy transition within the company.”

The EVs will be used by technicians, known as Helionauts. Heynen explained: “As of today, around 100 of our technicians from all over Switzerland are on the road electrically and are therefore also ambassadors for our vision and the energy transition.

“Helion plans to save around 300 tonnes of CO2 per year by switching to an electric fleet. In doing so, we are making our contribution to achieving the climate goals and assuming responsibility as a company.

“In addition, customers benefit from even more sustainable solar systems, as Helion technicians are now all on the road with electric commercial vehicles. This further improves the carbon footprint of our products.”

To ensure that day-to-day operations run smoothly from the outset, Helion set up an operational support group before the changeover in order to test the vehicles and identify possible challenges.

Helion has also invested in its charging infrastructure and expanded it across all of its branches.

Charge points were also financed by the company to enable home charging and, with an operating radius of around 100 kilometres, it says that the public charging network is only used in exceptional cases.

Lars Krause, member of the board of management responsible for sales and marketing at VWCV, said: “We are delighted that Helion is committed to the ID Buzz Cargo as a service vehicle and will also use self-generated solar power for carbon-neutral operation of its fleet.

“The ID Buzz stands for sustainable mobility like no other commercial vehicle. Together with our partners, we are driving forward the energy transition in the commercial vehicle sector.”

The ID Buzz Cargo has a range of up to 427km (265 miles) according to official tests.