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John Addison is the founder of Clean Fleet Report and continues to occasionally contribute to the publication. He is the author of Save Gas, Save the Planet and many articles at Clean Fleet Report. He has taught courses at U.C. Davis and U.C. Santa Cruz Extension and has delivered more than 1,000 speeches, workshop and moderated conference panels in more than 20 countries.

John Addison

Toyota Lithium Battery Delays and Advancements

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Toyota Prius enthusiasts may now be forced to wait until 2011 to order a Prius with lithium batteries. It was hoped that the shift to these batteries would give hybrids better miles per gallon and accelerate the availability of a plug-in hybrid sold and warrantied by a major auto maker. Toyota (TM) did provide significant encouragement with the announcement that it is demonstrating ten plug-in hybrids (PHEV) and plans to follow with commercial sales. The new Toyota with its NiMH battery pack and has an all-electric range of only 13 kilometers (8 miles) and a maximum speed of only 100 km/h (62 mph) in electric-only mode. GM may beat Toyota to the PHEV market. Independents like A123 will be there first.

Fuels from Wood and Waste not Food and Haste

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Americans are screaming for lower gasoline prices. In São Paulo, Brazil, the price of gasoline is R$2.43/liter, ethanol is only R$1.48/liter, disclosed Brazil’s National Petroleum Agency. Brazil has reduced its petroleum dependency by 40% with sugarcane ethanol. The United States and Brazil together produce about 90 percent of global fuel ethanol. In the United States the current benefits of ethanol are far behind Brazil.

Fuel Cell 2007 Conference Highlights

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Several hundred engineers, researchers, and managers shared fuel cell technology, trends, and market success at the Fuel Cell 2007 Conference. In some areas, fuel cells generate millions in revenues from commercial deployment; in other areas, fuel cells are early in research and development. A number of commercial products involve hydrogen PEM fuel cells. Business is steady for molten carbonate and phosphoric acid fuel cells. There was optimism about solid oxide fuel cells using a variety of fuels including landfill methane, natural gas, diesel, JP-8, and biomass.

Gas Misers or Corn Guzzlers

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People buying new cars are asking if they should get a high mileage hybrid that runs on asoline, or a flex-fuel vehicle that could run on E85 ethanol. The United States DOE’s and EPA’s fueleconomy.gov, made it easy for car buyers to compare choices.

Big Utilities vs. Big Oil

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At the recent Alternative Fuels and Vehicles Institute (AVFi) National Conference, major utilities were there with exciting presentations and demonstrations. Major California utilities included Sempra Energy (SRE), Southern California Edison (EIX), and PG&E (PCG). Major automotive and truck manufacturers showed their latest alt-fuel vehicles. Globally there are over 30 million electric vehicles and over 5 million natural gas vehicles.Vehicles give utilities added markets for electricity and natural gas, the opportunity to use excess off-peak electricity that is now wasted, and long-term opportunities to capture electricity from vehicles (V2G) when electricity is in peak demand.

Walmart May Save $300 Million with Fleet Efficiency

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Wal-Mart operates the nation’s second largest private fleet. Wal-Mart is also famous for being operationally efficient. Every large fleet and logistics operator hopes to save millions by learning from Wal-Mart’s new initiatives. Wal-Mart has hundreds of hybrid passenger vehicles. Now Wal-Mart sees bigger potential savings in heavy-duty Class 8 trucks.

AQMD Orders 30 more PHEV

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South Coast Air Quality Management District (AQMD) is ordering 30 more plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) that are likely to achieve over 100 mpg. Ten will be Toyota (TM) Priuses converted to PHEV by Hymotion using A123 lithium batteries. 20 will be Ford (F) Escapes converted to PHEV by Quantum (QTWW) using Advanced Lithium Power batteries. Total investment in the 30 vehicles and charging stations will be $3,777,843. AQMD will contribute most of the money.

Solar Santa Monica

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Santa Monica now has over 30 battery electric vehicles (BEV). The largest BEVs are Toyota RAVs which are used by inspectors, engineers, and in other city jobs. The city has a variety of light electric vehicles (LEV) including Dymac, Columbia, e-Ride, GEM, and Taylor-Dunn which make ideal utility vehicles for people maintaining parks, the Pier, and Promenade. The city is now planning on adding two Phoenix BEV sport utility trucks: one for the water department and one for the library. The Phoenix trucks have an impressive 130 mile range. Santa Monica will trickle recharge each night at 220 volts, rather than use Phoenix’s fast recharge option.

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