Phoenix to sell 200 electric trucks a year to PG&E

Electric car maker Phoenix Motorcars has received commitment from California utility Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) to buy as many as 200 of its vehicles a year.

Phoenix announced today an initial order for an four of its zero-emission, all-electric sport utility trucks (SUTs) from PG&E, to be delivered in June. The SUTs, which are powered by UQM Technologies' propulsion system and Altairnano’s (NASDAQ: ALTI) NanoSafe™ battery pack, will represent the only series of battery-electric trucks in the PG&E fleet.

Phoenix’s SUT can travel at freeway-speeds while carrying five passengers and a full payload, the company claimed. The SUT has a driving range of over 100 miles, can be recharged in less than 10 minutes and has a battery pack with a lifespan of more than 12 years.

PG&E plans to place a purchase order for 200 of Phoenix Motorcar’s vehicles annually to assist in its daily operation of serving over 70,000 square miles in Central and Northern California, the company said today in a statement.

“PG&E operates the fourth largest alternative-fuel truck fleet in the nation, and we are honored to supply them with a reliable all-electric vehicle to improve their fleet operations,” says Daniel J. Elliott, CEO of Phoenix Motorcars. “We want to provide the California-fleet market with high-performance, zero-emission vehicles to reduce costs, improve air quality and protect public health.”

Phoenix Motorcars targets operators of fleet vehicles, such as public utilities, public transportation providers and delivery services. A limited number of vehicles will be available to consumers in 2007 with an expanded consumer launch scheduled for 2008. Phoenix Motorcars also says it plans to introduce an SUV model in late 2007.

Phoenix Motorcars is a privately-held company headquartered in Ontario, California. Altairnano is a partial owner.

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