European logistics firm DFDS has placed an order for ten solar-powered transport refrigeration units (TRUs), named “Endurance,” from UK startup Sunswap. The units, designed for zero-emission cold chain logistics, feature a battery and solar panels to help maintain low temperatures without reliance on diesel.
Sunswap reports that the Endurance units can sustain cooling for up to 22 hours per charge, with solar panels providing between 65% and 100% of the unit’s power needs. A full charge takes approximately 80 minutes, and the units can operate effectively for two days. This initial order marks Sunswap’s entry into the global cold-chain market, with CEO Michael Lowe calling it a “defining moment for Sunswap and sustainable transport refrigeration.”
The adoption of these TRUs by DFDS is expected to cut operational costs by 71% and reduce the company’s carbon footprint by 895 tonnes of CO₂ over a ten-year unit lifetime. “The Sunswap trailers provide a huge opportunity for us to reduce the carbon footprint of our operations and further strengthen our offering to customers,” said Matt O’Dell, DFDS’s Managing Director of Logistics in England.
DFDS, which has set a target to reduce its CO₂ emissions by 75% by 2030, also recently announced the purchase of ten electric heavy-duty trucks. The Sunswap units will soon join the UK fleet at DFDS’s Peterborough depot as part of the company’s broader sustainability strategy.
