Key takeaways
- Amazon's new delivery station in the UK incorporates several key sustainability features including locally sourced and lower-carbon building materials.
- The building will create around 100 jobs and is part of Amazon’s commitment to invest £40 billion in the UK from 2025 to 2027.
- It will be constructed to rigorous sustainability standards using advanced building techniques and technology.
Amazon has started construction on its first delivery station to seek new zero carbon certification in the UK and Europe.
The £40 million ($54 million) delivery station in Stockton-on-Tees in the north-east of England will use advanced building techniques and new technologies to help reduce its environmental impact, while also creating around 100 new jobs.
For example, timber and lower-carbon concrete will replace more traditional materials, while innovative technology like AI-powered carbon tracking will allow engineers to track emissions across all building systems—from wiring to plumbing fixtures.
“Decarbonizing 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.”
How Amazon is using sustainable materials and innovative technologies
The new 10,800-square-meter facility, where packages will be sorted for delivery to customers’ doorsteps throughout North Yorkshire and parts of County Durham, will be the first building in our global network to register for Living Future’s Zero Carbon Certification (v1.1), meaning it is constructed to rigorous sustainability standards.
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.
The building will become eligible for certification in 2027 following a full year of operational data collection and third-party assessment.
Set to open in autumn 2026, the new delivery station will use steel with high recycled content produced using renewable electricity. It will also feature mass timber beams and lower-carbon concrete, wall panels, and roofing materials.
We’re also testing new technologies to assess their potential for wider adoption on future projects. These include:
- 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 Climate Pledge Fund.
- 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 uses image recognition software to document exactly what enters and leaves the construction site by scanning delivery notes and waste tickets. This provides Amazon with quantifiable data on material usage in real-time instead of solely relying on end-of-project reporting – also 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.
More than 1,400-square-meter 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.
Amazon’s growing network of more sustainable buildings
The Stockton-on-Tees delivery station 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, AWS cloud infrastructure, and AI innovation.
SCA5 in Sacramento, California, which was the first North American logistics site to earn the prestigious “Zero Carbon Certification” from the International Living Future Institute (ILFI).
In Indiana, delivery station DII5 also doubles as an exercise in sustainability. The logistics center is packed with more than 40 market-ready technologies and systems designed to reduce its resource usage and shrink its carbon footprint. It even includes 5+ acres of preserved forests for local animal species.
Creating job opportunities and providing a safe working environment
Since 2010, Amazon has made direct investments in its 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.
Next, step inside DII5 to see how our Indiana delivery station is putting dozens of sustainability strategies to the test.
More news from around the world
- Amazon Leo successfully launches first heavy-lift mission of 2026 with Arianespace
- Amazon's water conservation and replenishment efforts around the world
- Amazon launches the Digital Arabic Library, connecting Arabic speakers with more than 38,000 titles
- Alexa+ launches in Canada, the first country to get the next generation of Alexa outside the US
