British Gas has ordered 1,000 of the new electric Vivaro-e van from Vauxhall for its engineers – a deal said to mark the largest electric vehicle order for a commercial fleet in the UK.

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said the deal marks another milestone as the UK continues on the road to a green transport recovery

Launched last month in the UK, the Vivaro-e offers up to a 205-mile official range along with a 1,226kg payload and is available as a panel van and a double cab, while a passenger version is also launching.

The vans will be deployed on the British Gas fleet over the next 12 months and be rolled out nationwide across the British Gas engineer workforce. The vans will be deployed among engineers who have volunteered to test them but also based on areas where the need to lower emission is greater and vehicle already need replacing. Engineers will also have chargers installed at their homes.

The vehicles are part of plans by British Gas parent Centrica to electrify its 12,000-strong fleet by 2030 and will be joined by further Vauxhall electric vehicles as they launch, potentially including the all-electric Combo-e that arrives next summer.

Matthew Bateman, managing director of British Gas, said: “Our engineers and their vans are part of the local community they serve and it’s important we reduce the emissions of our vans so that we are contributing towards better air quality in their area and the environment. We are committed to the transition to electric vehicles which involves changing our fleet as well as helping consumers and businesses with charge points and infrastructure. We chose to work with Vauxhall as they were able to give us a large number of high-quality and low emission vans to help us effectively serve our customers – and they will also work with us on future EV solutions. Transport is a key area where we can improve carbon emissions and is an important part of our strategy to meet our net zero targets.”

Stephen Norman, managing director of Vauxhall Motors, added: “The strength of the quantity of orders for our all-electric van demonstrates that the Vauxhall Vivaro-e, the first step in the electrification of our entire van range, can contribute towards the transition towards low emissions vehicles whilst improving air quality.”