FairPrice Group (FPG) has become the first organisation in Singapore to receive approval from the Land Transport Authority (LTA) to operate autonomous vehicles (AVs) on public roads for supply chain operations. In collaboration with Zelos Technology, FPG plans to integrate nearly 30 AVs into its fleet, aiming to automate routine tasks such as transporting goods between distribution centres.
The partnership with Zelos marks a significant step in FPG’s strategy to enhance its supply chain efficiency and sustainability. The Zelos Z10 AVs, which are fully electric and driverless, boast a load capacity of up to 1.5 tonnes and a range of 210km. These vehicles are expected to reduce FPG’s CO2 emissions by 27 tonnes annually and free up staff for more complex tasks.
Vipul Chawla, Group CEO of FairPrice Group, highlighted the initiative’s role in supporting Singapore’s supply resilience. “Through this initiative with Zelos, we are bolstering our capability to support the nation’s supply resilience by introducing innovation that makes our supply chain operations more efficient, sustainable, and digitally-enabled,” he stated.
The initiative is part of FPG’s broader efforts to ensure a sustainable and digitally-enabled supply chain, which includes expanding its electric vehicle fleet to over 160 by 2030. Terry Zhou, Managing Director of Zelos Technology, noted the deployment as a milestone in Zelos’s global expansion, emphasising its potential to reduce logistics costs and enhance transportation capacity in Singapore.
Enterprise Singapore facilitated the collaboration, underscoring the potential for greater productivity and sustainability in the logistics sector. This development paves the way for exploring more commercially viable use cases within the industry.
