Phoenix Motorcars has received (via The Energy Blog) 75 fleet orders from several municipalities and a utility company for its zero-emission, all-electric, freeway-ready sports utility truck. The company, which is on target to manufacture and sell 500 fleet-ready vehicles by year’s end, will produce 16 pilot-build vehicles next month.
Some of the 16 vehicles will be used to continue validation of the federally mandated safety test process. The company is working with Boshart Engineering, an Ontario, California company that specializes in vehicle certification services, to gain its Federal Motor Vehicle Certification. “Boshart has already made substantial progress towards certifying Phoenix’s vehicles,” said Dan Elliott, CEO of Phoenix Motorcars. “Boshart has kept to a very aggressive timetable.”
The company also confirmed that in consideration for a three-year exclusivity agreement within the U.S., Altair Nanotechnologies received a 16.6 percent ownership in the company. The three-year exclusivity agreement provides Phoenix with limited, exclusive use of Altairnano’s NanoSafe battery packs in four-wheel, all-electric vehicles having a gross weight up to 6,000 pounds. Phoenix must meet minimum battery pack purchases, annually, to maintain the limited exclusivity agreement. The minimum commitment to maintain exclusivity for 2007 would provide $16 Million in battery pack sales to Altairnano.
The Phoenix Motorcars sport utility truck can cruise on the freeway at up to 95 m.p.h. while carrying five passengers and a full payload, a capability that has caught the attention of fleet dealers, consumers, Hollywood and the media. It exceeds all specifications for a Type III ZEV and has a driving range of 130 miles. Its battery can be recharged in less than 10 minutes and has a life-span of 12 years or more.
Phoenix Motorcars’ 2007 market strategy targets operators of fleet vehicles, such as public utilities, public transportation providers, and delivery services. “These are full-sized vehicles which carry five people at freeway speeds,” said Elliott. “There is tremendous pent-up demand among fleet buyers for a real zero-emission, all-electric vehicle, and we are well on our way to satisfying this market demand.”
