UAE Plans Faster Shift to Electric Delivery Vehicles

Post by : Bianca Suleiman

Photo: Abu Dhabi Media Office 

The UAE Independent Climate Change Accelerators (UICCA), along with Amazon and 7X, has shared an important report to help bring more electric delivery vans to the UAE. This report was launched during a special discussion at the Mobility Live Middle East conference in Dubai. Many experts from UICCA, Amazon, 7X’s delivery arm EMX, and PwC joined to talk about these ideas.

The report suggests clear steps to make electric delivery vehicles more common in the UAE. These include setting up special charging areas just for delivery vehicles, making rules the same across all emirates, finding ways to recycle old batteries, and giving rewards or benefits to companies that use electric vehicles.

These ideas came from a meeting held in May 2024, called a Policy Hack, organised by UICCA, Amazon, and 7X. More than 50 people joined this meeting, including people from delivery companies, charging companies, fleet managers, UAE ministries, and energy and transport departments. They talked about the problems and solutions for using electric vehicles for deliveries.

Sheikha Shamma bint Sultan bin Khalifa Al Nahyan, the President and CEO of UICCA, said this report shows a clear way to use electric vehicles for deliveries in the UAE. She said it is very important to reduce pollution and improve city transport with smart and green solutions. She also said now is the time to work together to make these plans real and build a strong system for the future.

Prashant Saran, Director of Operations for Middle East, Africa and Türkiye at Amazon, said the UAE can lead the region in using electric delivery vehicles. He said Amazon will continue to support this change by working with the government, investing in new systems, and using new technology to help the UAE reach its green goals.

Tariq Al Wahedi, Group CEO of 7X, said using electric vehicles for deliveries is not just a company decision but is very important for the whole country. He said when smart leaders and companies work together, they can build electric vehicle charging systems faster. He added that 7X, through its delivery arm EMX, is happy to be part of this change and will continue to support solutions that are good for everyone and the environment.

This report and Policy Hack are part of a bigger project by UICCA, Amazon, and 7X. They want to help the UAE reach its National Electric Vehicles Policy goal, which is to reduce energy use in transport by 20% by 2050. The UAE also plans to make half of all its vehicles electric by 2050.