Electric vehicles

Projects including electric car batteries that offer range similar to internal combustion engines and which can charge in as little as 12 minutes are among green automotive initiatives awarded more than £91 million of government and industry funding.

Four projects have been awarded grants through the Advanced Propulsion Centre Collaborative Research and Development competition, which supports the development of innovative low carbon automotive technology. 

Together, the projects could save almost 32 million tonnes of carbon emissions, equivalent to the lifetime emissions of 1.3 million cars, and secure thousands of jobs.

They will also address current concerns among drivers and fleets about electric vehicles, particularly when it comes to range, charging time and cost.

The projects awarded funding are:

BMW - £26.2 million to develop an electric battery that will rival the driving range of internal combustion engines, helping to tackle concerns over how far electric vehicles can travel on a single charge

Project CELERITAS - £9.7 million to create fast-charging batteries for electric and fuel cell hybrid vehicles that can charge in as little as 12 minutes

The BRUNEL project - £14.6 million to develop a novel zero-emission, hydrogen-fuelled engine to decarbonise heavy goods vehicles

REEcorner - £41.2 million to radically redesign light and medium-sized commercial electric vehicles by moving the steering, braking, suspension, and powertrain into the wheel arch, allowing for increased storage space and design flexibility

The funding comes as the government pushes to end the sale of new petrol and diesel cars and vans in the UK by 2030, which would make the country the first major economy to decarbonise transport.

It is currently consulting on phasing out the sale of new diesel and petrol heavy goods vehicles by 2040.

The Advanced Propulsion Centre works with the government, the automotive industry, and academics to deliver industrial innovation that will support the shift to zero-emission vehicles.

The funding announcement comes as Reflex Vehicle Hire continues to put the latest vehicle technology into the hands of fleet managers to support the transition to cleaner motoring.

The Reflex Renewable Drive programme has already provided a wealth of zero-emission vehicles to fleet operators to test, including:

•    Fiat 500 electric
•    Ford Transit PHEV
•    Lexus UX 300e
•    Maxus e Deliver 3 
•    Maxus e Deliver 9
•    Mazda MX-30
•    Mercedes-Benz EQC 
•    Mercedes-Benz eVito 
•    Renault Twizy
•    Tesla Model 3
•    Volkswagen ID.3
•    Volkswagen ID.4

To test a zero-emission vehicle through Reflex Renewable Drive or to hire a car or van from our market-leading range of models, contact one of our expert team members.

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