Pet Valu is deploying two all-electric Volvo VNR Class 8 trucks out of its Surrey, B.C., depot

Pet Valu is dipping its paw into fleet electrification with two Class 8 electric trucks in British Columbia.

The Canadian pet supply retailer is piloting the two Volvo VNR trucks from its new Surrey, B.C., distribution centre. Pet Valu is looking to study the trucks as it considers adopting more zero-emission vehicles.

“Each electric delivery truck represents an opportunity to avoid consuming over 25,000 litres of diesel fuel or over 62 tonnes of CO2e per year,” says Nico Weidel, chief supply chain officer at Pet Valu, in a press release.

“We’re excited to explore how these trucks perform and assess the potential for further electrification of our delivery fleet.”

Duty cycle

Pet Valu’s electric trucks will make deliveries to Pet Valu, Bosley’s by Pet Valu, Total Pet and Tisol in B.C.

They will travel approximately 300 km per day, says Pet Valu.

The Volvo VNR Class 8 trucks have six battery packs for a range of approximately 442 kilometres per charge. The trucks will charge overnight at the Surrey depot where two 120kW chargers are installed, says Volvo.

In addition to savings in emissions and fuel, Volvo says another significant benefit to electric trucks is reducing noise pollution.

“We are excited to see Pet Valu taking the initiative in the Canadian pet supply industry by adopting Volvo’s VNR Electric trucks” says Matthew Blackman, managing director for Canada at Volvo Trucks North America.

“As they venture into sustainable transportation, this effort is expected to not only strengthen their supply chain but also help support a healthier planet, one ‘purr-fectly’ quiet kilometre at a time.”

Part of a larger plan

Pet Valu has approximately 800 stores across Canada. Its electric-truck pilot is part of a larger plan for a “multi-year supply chain transformation.”

In its 2023 ESG Report, Pet Valu describes how it is taking steps to make its operations more sustainable.

Adopting electric trucks is one prong of the initiative.

Others include installing solar panels at its facility in Brampton, Ont., to generate 1 megawatt of power (with the intention of expanding the infrastructure out to other distribution centres); lowering Scope 1 and 2 emissions and exploring other low carbon alternative fuels.

To help support the purchase of the two electric Volvo trucks, Pet Valu obtained incentives from the Clean BC – Go Electric and the federal Incentives for Medium- and Heavy-Duty Zero-Emission Vehicles (iMHZEV) programs.

In addition, Pet Valu is exploring carbon credits for the vehicles to maximize financial benefits from its zero-emission fleet.