Balfour Beatty has trialled a 100% electric-powered fleet of plant and vehicles at one of its sites as part of its carbon reduction programme. But despite some benefits, the company has concluded that this is not yet a realistic option for bigger sites.
The six-week experiment involved using electric telehandlers, excavators, dumpers, wacker plates and vans at the company’s site at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh.
The immediate benefits of the trial included better air quality and less noise pollution. However, the lack of an advanced electric vehicle charging infrastructure and the availability of viable charging stations presented challenges to adopting the initiative in the long-term.
Writing on a blog detailing the outcomes of the trial, Jo Gilroy, group sustainability director at Balfour Beatty, explained that an all-electric plant is not yet a realistic option for bigger sites or heavy equipment.
“Most battery-powered plant is considerably smaller than diesel plant and therefore only offers enough power for around four-to-six hours of work before it needs recharging,” said Gilroy. “The required infrastructure does not currently exist to accommodate a fully electric fleet on a large scale, without a mains grid connection.”
The future of construction is hydrogen
Instead of focusing on electric solutions, Gilroy said the priority for the construction industry to reduce carbon emissions should be transitioning to hydrogen.
However, there is a lack of infrastructure for transporting hydrogen, and not enough green hydrogen is being produced. The earliest that viable solutions can be implemented at scale is 2025, she said.
“Replacing the diesel generators that power our site mobilisations and compounds with hydrogen would see a significant reduction to our carbon footprint, given that 46% of our sites sampled use diesel generators to power temporary accommodation units on site,” added Gilroy.
Combining hydrogen generators with other technologies like thin film solar panels in modular accommodation on sites could reduce carbon emissions and save the company between £3m and £5m annually, Gilroy claimed. “Replicated across the sector, this could be a game-changer.”
Gilroy concluded: “We will also continue to invest in our work on hydrogen as our view is that this is likely to be where the future lies for heavy plant.”
