London private cab and courier company sees “significant uplift” in revenue following £18m electrification investment

As part of Bdaily’s coverage of Green Energy Week, we look to Addison Lee, London’s largest private hire, courier, and black taxi provider, who has announced its financial results, following a transition to electric vehicles.

Achieving an Adjusted EBITDA of £7.9m for the year ended 31 August 2021 on a turnover of £164m, the positive results come just two years following the takeover of the business, with the change in ownership finalised on the same day that the first UK national lockdown was announced on March 23, 2020.

With London opening back up this year, the firm has already achieved a “significant uplift” in business, showing a 47 per cent year-on-year growth in passenger revenue and a 53 per cent year-on-year growth in EBITDA between February 2021 and February 2022.

Addison Lee’s CEO, Liam Griffin, commented: “By focussing on our core strengths, our expert management team have successfully managed to offset the difficult financial situation that we inherited in 2020, all while launching new initiatives to support Londoners and keep the capital moving during the pandemic.”

Alongside its acquisition of former competitor ComCab London, last year the firm also announced its plans for a rapid transition to electric vehicles for its core London fleet, to be completed by the end of 2023. Addison Lee claims to be “leading the industry in sustainability”, already investing £18m to roll out its first 450 Volkswagen ID.4s.

These vehicles will remove 11,000 tCO2 over their three-year lifecycle and improve air quality across the communities in which the company operates. This reinforces the 3-year-old ‘Greener Future Programme’ which has seen Addison Lee offset over 35,000 tCO2 from its passenger and courier services since 2019.

Liam continued: “We know first-hand the role that the transport sector must play in tackling climate change, and we’re extremely proud of the work we’ve done to become an industry leader in the transition.

With the electrification of our fleet moving at pace and our ongoing push to meet London’s demand for safe, quality, and reliable travel, we are confident that as London gets back on its feet, we’ll continue to grow and be here to support the city that we love and have called home for over 45 years.“