Tesco, the UK's largest supermarket chain and one of the largest in the world, has put 30 new fully electric refrigerated vans to work, equipped with Thermo King's E-200 units. The new vehicles create a zero-emission home delivery vehicle fleet to move food and goods in the most sustainable and environmentally friendly way.

Thermo King's E-200 electric refrigeration units, a leader in transport temperature control solutions and a Trane Technologies brand, offer vehicle-independent multi-temperature performance and intelligent optimization of energy sources. The units go beyond traditional direct-drive systems and are equipped with a patented power management, which helps reduce energy consumption, increase vehicle range and improve efficiency and reliability.

The E-200 helps ensure that delivery operations comply with a growing set of regional and national regulations. The units comply with PIEK standards and Urban Vehicle Access Requirements (UVAR) for noise levels in urban environments, and allow access to low-emission (LEZ) and ultra-low-emission (ULEZ) zones, with extremely low noise levels low to complete the night deliveries.

"The E-200 units have been designed to provide constant capacity and intelligent energy management, features necessary to take advantage of the opportunities offered by fully electric commercial vehicles", said David O'Gorman, Thermo King regional director of sales. "Our units are ideal for last mile deliveries, operations in distribution centers and for all stages of the supply chain. By equipping Tesco's new LDV electric vehicles with E-200 units, we've made low-noise, low-emission zones accessible to any delivery. We are happy to be part of this project and to work together with Tesco for a sustainable tomorrow”.

Being inverter driven, unlike typical direct drive solutions designed for diesel combustion engines, Thermo King's E-200 offers constant capacity regardless of the vehicle's engine and can operate with both electric and motor vehicles. By varying the flow of electricity to the refrigeration unit, the inverter can provide more power when needed, resulting in a rapid reduction in temperature during pre-cooling. By carefully checking the power supply, the inverter provides accurate control of the motor speed and the exact cooling or heating capacity needed to control the temperature.

Thermo King E-200 aligns with Trane Technologies' sustainability aspirations for 2030, which include a commitment to reduce customer carbon emissions by one gigaton, equivalent to 2% of the world's annual emissions or to the combined annual emissions of Italy, France and the United Kingdom.