Amazon has begun construction on its first delivery station designed to achieve Living Future’s Zero Carbon Certification in the UK and Europe. The delivery station, in Stockton-on-Tees in the north-east of England, will incorporate advanced building techniques to help reduce its environmental impact. Amazon will invest more than £40 million in the delivery station, creating more than 100 roles including managers, supervisors, and associates.
The investment is part of Amazon’s commitment to invest £40 billion in the UK from 2025 to 2027, supporting job creation, infrastructure expansion, and emerging technologies including logistics, and AI innovation.
The new 10,800m² delivery station, where packages are sorted for delivery to customers’ doorsteps throughout North Yorkshire and parts of County Durham, is set to open in autumn 2026. It will be the first Amazon UK building to register for Living Future’s Zero Carbon Certification (v1.1), meaning it is constructed and operated with rigorous decarbonisation measures. The building becomes eligible for certification in 2027 following a full year of operational data collection and third-party assessment.
The building will be constructed to the UK Net Zero Carbon Buildings Standard, the new UK framework. The building incorporates several key sustainability features including locally sourced and lower-carbon building materials, and energy efficient systems. Amazon will track performance data and share learnings to help refine the methodology for future industry adoption.
“Decarbonising buildings means tackling both how we build and how we operate,” said Prajvin Prakash, UK director of Amazon Logistics. “This site shows how we’re using smarter materials, advanced technology, and AI-driven insights to cut emissions from day one and improve performance over the long term. When fully operational, it’s expected to consume around 50% less energy than a typical logistics building – a significant step forward as we work toward our goal to achieve net-zero carbon by 2040. Backed by our £40 billion UK investment, we’re pairing sustainability progress with long-term economic growth in communities like Stockton-on-Tees.”
Using sustainable building methods and new technologies by design
The delivery station will use lower-carbon steel with high recycled content, which is produced using renewable electricity and complemented by mass timber beams to create a more sustainable structure. It will be built with lower-carbon concrete, wall panels, and roofing materials.
Amazon is also testing new technologies to assess their potential for wider adoption on future projects:
· Cement-free paving – replaces traditional cement with steel slag and stores captured carbon within the precast blocks.
· Carbon-storing building materials – captured carbon dioxide is embedded in concrete using technology supported by Amazon’s investments in climate-tech startups.
· AI-powered carbon tracking – using advanced analytics software, engineers track carbon emissions across all building systems – from wiring to plumbing fixtures – allowing Amazon to identify and implement targeted efficiency improvements.
· Photo-based material tracking – image recognition software documents exactly what enters and leaves the construction site by scanning delivery notes and waste tickets, providing Amazon with quantifiable data on material usage in real-time instead of solely relying on end-of-project reporting – and helping with waste reduction.
By combining local supply chains with lower carbon materials and practices, total carbon emissions associated with the construction are expected to be at least 20% lower than Amazon’s previous design standards and significantly exceed industry standards.
Building for the long-term
The design of the building has been optimised for Amazon’s day-to-day business and early projections show that, when fully operational, it is expected to use around half the energy compared to a typical logistics building.
More than 1,400m² of rooftop solar panels will power daytime operations. The building will use an all-electric heating and cooling system, with water-saving plumbing fixtures set to reduce water consumption by approximately 20% compared to conventional designs.
Creating job opportunities and providing a safe working environment
Roles at the new Stockton-on-Tees delivery station will be open for applications soon at https://www.jobsatamazon.co.
Since 2010, Amazon has made direct investments in our UK operations of more than £80 billion, creating tens of thousands of UK jobs in logistics, technology and corporate roles. The Stockton-on-Tees facility demonstrates how Amazon’s investment strategy combines job creation with sustainable infrastructure development, bringing economic opportunity and environmental innovation to communities across the UK.
