Amazon has broken ground on a new delivery station in Stockton-on-Tees that will become its first UK building to pursue Living Future’s Zero Carbon Certification. The project positions the scheme as a live demonstration of zero carbon building construction, integrating alternative materials, digital monitoring tools and performance-led design standards at the build stage.
The £40 million development will create around 100 jobs in the north-east while establishing a benchmark for lower-emission logistics facilities across the UK and Europe. With a total floor area of 10,800m², the project embeds carbon reduction strategies directly into procurement, structural specification and site execution.
Material strategy and embodied carbon reduction
The structural frame will incorporate lower-carbon steel with high recycled content, produced using renewable electricity. Mass timber beams will complement the steel structure, reducing the carbon footprint of traditional building methods and supporting a hybrid structural approach aligned with zero carbon building construction principles.
Amazon is testing four technologies during construction:
- Cement-free paving that replaces traditional cement with steel slag whilst permanently storing captured carbon within precast blocks
- Carbon-storing building materials that embed captured carbon dioxide directly into concrete
- AI-powered carbon tracking that monitors emissions across all building systems, from wiring to plumbing, enabling targeted efficiency improvements
- Photo-based material tracking using image recognition to document exactly what enters and leaves the construction site in real-time, helping reduce waste
Through the use of local supply chains combined with lower carbon materials and processes, total construction emissions are expected to be at least 20% lower than Amazon’s previous design standards.
Construction aligned with operational performance
The delivery station, which will serve North Yorkshire and parts of County Durham, has been engineered to reduce energy demand from the outset. Early projections indicate that when fully operational in autumn 2026, the facility will use around half the energy compared to a typical logistics building.
More than 1,400m² of rooftop solar panels will support daytime operations. The building will operate using an all-electric heating and cooling system, eliminating the need for gas. Water-saving plumbing fixtures are expected to reduce water consumption by approximately 20% compared to conventional designs.
Certification and performance validation
The Stockton-on-Tees delivery station is the first Amazon UK building registered for Living Future’s Zero Carbon Certification (v1.1), a performance-based standard covering both construction and operational emissions. The site is also being built to the UK Net Zero Carbon Buildings Standard.
After one full year of operations, third-party assessors will review performance data to determine whether the building qualifies for formal certification in 2027. Amazon will track and share learnings from the process to refine methodology for broader 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.”
