EC Praises GE Electric Vehicle Announcement

WASHINGTON, Nov. 11, 2010 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Robbie Diamond, President and CEO of the Electrification Coalition (EC), strongly praised GE for its announcement today of plans to purchase 25,000 electric vehicles for its own fleet and Fleet Services business. GE, a Coalition member, is one of the world's largest fleet owners, operates a leading global fleet management business, and offers a vast portfolio of electric vehicle infrastructure technology.

"I congratulate GE on a bold move that I believe will be good for them, and even more importantly, good for the nation," Diamond said. "In fact, the Electrification Coalition -- of which GE is a member -- will on Monday release a major paper detailing how fleets represent a critical market for electrification. It is vital that fleet owners and operators lead the way in this transformation, as GE is doing today. I thank GE, and look forward to working with them as we continue our efforts to accelerate the deployment of electric vehicles in order to combat the economic, environmental, and national security threats posed by oil dependence."

The Electrification Coalition, launched in November 2009, is committed to promoting policies and actions that facilitate the deployment of electric vehicles on a mass scale in order to combat the economic, environmental, and national security threats posed by our nation's dependence on petroleum. The EC's 2009 Electrification Roadmap proposed a set of policies in which geographic areas would compete to be selected as electrification deployment communities, in which targeted, temporary financial incentives are employed so that all of the elements of an electrified transportation system are deployed simultaneously. On May 27, Republicans and Democrats in both the House and the Senate introduced legislation that largely echoed the Roadmap. A version of the legislation was approved by the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee on an overwhelming bipartisan 19-4 vote on July 21. The proposal was shortly after included in energy legislation introduced by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. Days later, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell emerged from a meeting with President Obama and said that electric vehicles represented one of the areas in which Republicans could work with the White House.

On Monday, the Coalition will release the Fleet Electrification Roadmap. The report provides insight and analysis on the economics of electric vehicles for fleet operators and demonstrates targeted opportunities in which innovative models can help make electric-drive vehicles a compelling opportunity for U.S. businesses and government. By focusing on these opportunities, fleet operators could drive much-needed scale production volumes in the U.S. battery industry, driving down costs to benefit the broader consumer market for electric vehicles.