Southern Water will be replacing a large number of its vehicles in a bid to be more sustainable.

The company plans to replace a third of its engineering vehicle fleet, equating to more than 300 vehicles, most of which will be partially powered by solar panels.

Located atop the vans, these solar panels will enable drivers and employees to charge their essential equipment while on the move, reducing the need for trips to company sites.

The incoming fleet will be operational across the south east and utilised by a range of teams, including those focused on technical, operational, and customer services.

These vehicles are not your typical van; they will house a string of new features such as safety sensors for weighing the vehicle, tyres suitable for all seasons, and speed limiters capping the vehicles’ speed at 70 mph.

In an announcement about the initiative, fleet manager at Southern Water, Martin Lock, shared his thoughts.

He said: "We are replacing around a third of our fleet with new vehicles.

"Vans such as the Vauxhall Combo, Vivaro and Movano, plus Ford 4 x 4 Ranger pickup will replace some of our older vehicles and include the new livery.

"There are some exciting new features that include solar panels on the van’s roofs to power on board batteries, reversing cameras and on board weighing."

Southern Water's new fleet will also consist of more than 30 new 4x4 automatic trucks, intended for use at remote sites and for off-road operations.

The company explained the new vans are a part of their line-up of innovative technologies they employ for the benefit of customers.

They make use of satellites for detecting hidden water leaks, leverage the power of AI for identifying sewer blockages, and utilise a combination of solar and ‘poo’ power for running some of their sites.

Southern Water also offers advice to customers on how they can reduce water bills, highlighting how trimming a minute off their daily shower could save them up to £75 annually.

A 45 per cent reduction in water bill payments could also be achieved through their essentials tariff.