Enova, a leading energy optimisation specialist, and GreenChill Systems, a developer of clean energy power solutions, today announce a joint solution that enables cold chain operators to use refrigerated trailers as flexible, on‑site energy storage.
The approach addresses one of the sector’s most pressing challenges: how to electrify transport and depot operations while managing limited grid capacity, rising energy costs, increasing volatility in energy markets, and doing so without excessive capital investment.
Turning Energy Limitations into Operational Advantage
Cold storage and distribution centres are facing growing pressure to decarbonise while operating within electrical infrastructure that was never designed to support widespread electrification.
Common challenges include:
- Limited grid import capacity and long lead times for reinforcement
- Insufficient headroom to charge electric trailers at scale
- Exposure to peak‑pricing, imbalance charges and volatile tariffs
At the same time, large numbers of refrigerated trailers already operate with significant onboard electrical storage. This is an asset that has historically been unused beyond transport needs.
From Transport Assets to Energy Assets
GreenChill’s refrigerated trailers have been designed to incorporate bi-directional charging enabling them to act as energy storage hubs, supporting site energy needs without requiring immediate grid upgrades or export capabilities.
GreenChill’s Solar‑Electric System decarbonises the refrigerated transport industry, by retrofitting refrigerated trailers with modular lithium battery storage, rooftop solar generation and intelligent control systems, while retaining the original diesel engine as an automatic fail-safe.
GreenChill’s latest innovation – the PMS system – integrates directly into depot operations, providing an advanced energy optimisation platform. It leverages parked or idle trailers as mobile battery storage units, significantly reducing reliance on diesel and expensive grid electricity.
Further to this, Enova’s optimisation platform intelligently manages when and how stored energy is used across depot operations. By responding to dynamic time-of-use tariffs, peak demand periods and real-time market pricing, the system can charge trailers when electricity is cheapest and discharge power back into site operations when costs are highest. This reduces reliance on expensive peak-rate grid electricity, lowers overall energy spend and helps operators make better use of existing electrical capacity.
GreenChill trailers, equipped with battery storage, are treated as flexible energy assets on site. Crucially, the system can either export power to the grid or serve on-site demand, with the optimal strategy determined by each site’s grid capacity, operational requirements and commercial conditions.
Unlike conventional vehicle to grid models, this approach prioritises on-site energy optimisation, enabling operators to extract value within the depot even where grid export is constrained or unavailable.
Together, the system enables operators to:
- Reduce peak electrical demand without grid upgrades
- Shift site energy load using trailer based storage
- Optimise charging around price, availability and operational schedules
- Integrate renewables and batteries for lower cost energy operation
- Gain real-time visibility of energy use, cost and carbon impact
Demonstrated Cost and Carbon Benefits
Operational data from early deployments shows:
- Eradication of diesel use, with refrigeration systems operating on stored electric energy
- Substantial site level electricity savings, achieved through optimised load‑shifting, peak‑shaving and flexible operation
- By combining fleet decarbonisation with intelligent depot energy management, operators can lower operating costs while progressing electrification without waiting for major infrastructure upgrades.
A Smarter Path to Electrification
By treating trailers, depots and energy systems as part of a single, intelligently managed ecosystem, the Enova–GreenChill solution allows cold chain operators to actively manage energy rather than passively consume it.
This creates a scalable pathway to electrification that reduces cost, risk and operational disruption while improving long-term resilience.
Industry Perspectives
Tanya Mulesa, UK Business Development Manager at Enova, said:
“The GreenChill system is an obvious on-site storage solution for cold chain operators looking to reduce both diesel and electricity costs. Not only can it pay for itself through diesel savings, it also lowers depot energy costs by using trailers as flexible, stationary storage. This is increasingly viable as the UK accelerates the adoption of vehicle-to-grid technology.”
Paul Cropper, Technical Director at GreenChill Systems, added:
“GreenChill systems fitted to refrigerated trailers have always carried significant energy capability – it just hasn’t been utilised. This partnership allows those assets to support the depot as well as the journey, reducing diesel reliance and enabling electrification without waiting for grid capacity or costly upgrades.”
Collaboration Driving Change
The partnership highlights how collaboration between technology providers can unlock new value from existing assets – turning operational constraints into commercial opportunities.
As grid infrastructure and policy continue to evolve, solutions like this enable cold chain operators to act now – reducing costs, emissions, and risk while preparing for a more electrified future.
