From IKEA to JB Hi-Fi: Australia’s best and worst fleets for the environment, ranked

Rental car company Avis is the country’s worst company for its fleet emissions, with Aldi, Officeworks, JB Hi-Fi, Myer, and David Jones rounding out the bottom of the rung. But Swedish flatpack titan IKEA came in the first place, according to a country-first analysis of Australian businesses.

Greenpeace Australia’s 2023 Electrifying Fleets Rankings found IKEA scored 9.5 out of 10 thanks to its completely electrified fleet operations, with big banks Bank Australia (8.5) and Westpac coming in towards the top of the analysis, too.

IKEA is leading the business pack in its greener choices, the analysis found. The homewares giant is committed to running on 100% renewable energy by 2025, including electrifying all cars and vans in last-mile delivery, while all IKEA trucks are due to be electrified by 2040.

CEO and Chief Sustainability Officer Mirja Viinanen said IKEA was simply responding to customer demand for the retail sector to slash the heavy environmental impact of its delivery services as the country works to decarbonise by mid-century.

“We’re so proud of the progress we have made with our delivery partners so far, and there is much more to do as we journey towards a zero emissions future,” Viinanen said.

Big brands lagging

But the country’s grocery duopoly is not heeding calls, it seems —  Coles scored just 2.5 out of 10 and Woolworths scored 3 out of 10, despite the latter urging the Albanese government just six months ago to legislate fuel efficiency standards and accelerate EV uptake.

“At the other end of the spectrum, Avis, Officeworks, JB Hi-Fi, Myer, and David Jones are now on the record as being stuck in first gear. Major supermarkets Coles and Woolworths also have a lot of work to do,” Greenpeace Australia Pacific Senior Campaigner Violette Snow said.

She said the business sector embracing electric vehicles would reduce the country’s annual climate emissions by a whopping 10% (transport emissions are the third largest source of pollution) while adding in electrified light commercial vehicles would triple that impact to 30%.

“The companies which operate corporate fleets in Australia can play an outsized role in tackling this present and growing threat to the climate while benefiting their own bottom line,” Snow said.

“Customers, employees, and investors are all crying out for companies to show leadership in tackling climate change. It’s time for Australian corporates to get into the fast lane on fleet transition.”

Electrifying is cheaper — report

This comes as a new report, Charging Corporate Action: The Case for Renewable-Powered Electric Vehicle Fleets, found by 2025 electric vehicles would be the cheapest option for corporate fleet managers.

Fleet purchases are a big chunk of the automotive pie in Australia — they account for two-fifths (40%) of the country’s total car sales, with over 450,000 business, government and rental cars driving out of the showroom each year.

And it’s not just vehicles. Australia Post debuted its new Volvo electric delivery truck this week, an Electric FL, which boasts a range of up to 300 kilometres via four batteries with a combined energy output of 266kWh.

But it was nothing out of the ordinary for the postal service, which already has Australia’s largest electric delivery fleet — some 4,635 vehicles, including electric bikes and three-wheeled electric vehicles.

However, Australia Post only score 4.6 out of 10 on Greenpeace’s rankings, because it had not committed to 100% electric passenger cars, utes, and vans, nor to 100% zero emissions in its trucking operations by 2040.

Banks doubling down on climate action

Greenpeace noted Bank Australia was putting its environmental action where its mouth was by not only committing to full fleet electrification but also ruling out lending to customers for petrol-powered vehicles in the next two years.

Head of Impact Jane Kern at Bank Australia said it was the country’s most ambitious bank in terms of climate action following a vow to reach zero carbon emissions by 2035.

“Transitioning transport, including our own fleet, away from fossil fuels to electric vehicles will be a key part of achieving this target,” she said.

“Our customers tell us taking action on climate change is a top priority and we think decisive leadership from businesses and government can help catalyse the action our customers and the wider community want to see.”