ISSN 1946-1011 The Hybrid Vehicle and Alternative Fuel Report March 15, 2017 The fine print: This report is a summary of articles appearing in popular, business, and technical media referring to the impact of fuel costs and fuel efficiency on vehicle technology, development, and markets. At the end of the report is a list of all articles summarized with hyperlinks to internet sources where available. Some articles may require free registration or paid subscriptions to view. The Hybrid Vehicle and Alternative Fuel Report (ISSN: 1946-1011) is compiled and written by Thomas L. R. Smith, Ph. D. (hereinafter referred to as “The Editor”), Economic Analysis Branch of the Budget and Financial Analysis Division, Washington State Department of Transportation. Contact The Hybrid Vehicle and Alternative Fuel Report’s editor at [email protected] or (360) 705-7941. Contributions of news items, original articles, cookies, and positive comments about The Report are welcome. TABLE OF CONTENTS HYBRIDS .......................................................................................................................................................................... 1 ELECTRIC VEHICLES ...................................................................................................................................................... 2 ALTERNATIVE FUELS ..................................................................................................................................................... 3 COMING TO A LOCATION NEAR YOU:. ......................................................................................................................... 3 OTHER TECHNOLOGY .................................................................................................................................................... 4 SUBSCRIBING TO The Hybrid Report. ........................................................................................................................... 5 ARTICLES REFERENCED ............................................................................................................................................... 5 National Sales for January 2016 Hybrids: Hybrid sales were up in February when compared to January, and up compared to February last year, Hybrid Cars (Cobb, March 2) reports. Hybrid sales outperformed the overall new car market, which was down compared to February last year. Toyota continues to dominate the market with 54.25% of hybrids sold. The Prius, which was knocked out of first place last month by the Ford Fusion, is back on top. Toyota has six of the top 10 hybrids, while Ford, Kia, Honda, and Hyundai have entries in the top 10. Hybrids accounted for 2.14% of all new car sales. Plug-in Hybrids: General Motors’ Volt led the plug-in pack with 29.13%, but Toyota’s Prius Prime plug-in was nipping at the Volt’s heels with 21.8%. The two Ford entries came in at three and four in the top five and pushed Ford ahead of Toyota for total sales at 23.63%. Audi’s A3 plug-in rounded out the top five. Plug-in hybrids accounted for 0.47% of new cars sales (Cobb). Electric Cars: Tesla’s Model S dominated the electric car sector with 29.08% of electric car sales, while the Nissan Leaf and Chevy Bolt were back in second and third place with 17.74% and 16.28%, respectively. The Tesla Model X took the fourth place slot, while the BMW i3 filled up the top five. Overall, Tesla took 42.76% of the electric car market, while electrics took 0.44% of the new car market (Cobb). Hybrids, plug-in hybrids, and electric cars accounted for 3.05% of the new car market. In Norway, Europe’s largest oil producing nation, hybrids and electric cars accounted for 51% of new car sales in January and 47.8% in February, the Economic Times (March 6, 2017) tells. HYBRIDS In Spain, hybrid sales increased by 68%, selling 31,000 cars last year, while electric car sales increased by 51%, selling 4,750, Murcia Today (February 28, 2017) mentions. In Murcia, however, hybrid sales jumped 111%, while electric sales barely moved the meter. The charging infrastructure is not well developed in Murcia, which may discourage electric buyers. Madrid, which has a better infrastructure has much higher sales of electrics. 1 © 2017 Washington State Department of Transportation The Hybrid Vehicle and Alternative Fuel Report ISSN 1946-1011 March 15, 2017 2 If you ever go across the sea to Ireland, then maybe at the closing of your day, you can sit and watch the moonrise over Claddagh,1 and see all the hybrids drive around Galway Bay, the Galway Independent (March 1, 2017) indicates. Toyota’s hybrid sales in Ireland have jumped 128% over 2016. Hybrids make up 3.5% of the Irish new car market. It’s possible that the success of hybrids is connected to the drop of diesel sales it that country. Norwegian Electric Systems signed a contract last month to provide hybrid propulsion systems for three ferries operated by Norway’s Fjord1. The ferries will primarily use electric propulsion for ferry crossings and internal combustion engine for charging. The vessels can also charge from shore power (Norwegian Electric Systems, February 7, 2017). ELECTRIC VEHICLES The North West Ambulance Service is testing electric rapid response vehicles in the English town of Rochdale, near Manchester, Rochdale Online (February 27, 2017) reports. The service is leasing four extended range BMW i3s and expects to save £2.5 million ($3,079,196.95) over the four-year lease of the cars. They also believe the cars will reduce carbon emissions by 73%. Maven City, a car sharing program operated in 17 cities by General Motors, is electrifying its Los Angeles fleet, GM (February 16, 2017) pressed in a press release. GM is fielding 100 electric Bolts in LA. Bolt drivers using the car sharing service will get to charge free at EVgo Freedom stations for a limited time. Chargemaster, which operates a charging network in England, will open an multibrand electric vehicle showroom in Milton Keynes, northwest of London, Wards Auto (Harman, February 28, 2017) writes. The EV Experience Center will have electric car experts on hand who can answer questions about the cars and visitors to the Center can test drive vehicles. The Center will have 52 electric vehicles available. Prospective buyers will be directed to dealerships. The Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority, which operates the transit system in St. Petersburg and Tampa Bay, Florida, authorized the purchase of two electric buses, Sierra Club of Florida (Compton, February 24, 2017) says. The transit authority will buy the buses from BYD, which should be in service next year. Even as more states are considering charging additional fees on electric cars, New York will begin offering up to $2,000 in rebates for electric and plug-in hybrid cars, The Sacramento Bee (Klepper, March 3, 2017) buzzes. The rebates will be available starting April 1st. Ocado, an online grocery delivery business in London, is testing an electric delivery vehicle, The Independent (Rodionova, March 5, 2017) indicates. The TRIPL, designed in Denmark, is a three-wheeled scooter. It has a top speed of 45 kilometers per hour (27.96 mph) and range of 100 km (62.14 miles). 1 Apologies to Arthur Colahan, MD, “Galway Bay,” 1947, © 1957 Box & Cox Publications LTD, recorded by Thomas L. R. Smith, Songs of the Sea, Masterworks Choral Ensemble, 2015. © 2017 Washington State Department of Transportation The Hybrid Vehicle and Alternative Fuel Report ISSN 1946-1011 March 15, 2017 3 The Bishop of Rome, Vicar of Jesus Christ, Successor of the Prince of the Apostles, Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church, Primate of Italy, Archbishop and Metropolitan of the Roman Province, Sovereign of the State of Vatican City, Servant of the Servants of God, a.k.a. the Pope, just acquired a Nissan Leaf, Huffington Post (Grenoble, March 6, 2017) huffs. The vehicle was donated to Vatican City by the German company Wermuth Asset Management, which manages renewable energy assets. The company originally offered the Pontiff a Tesla Model S, but Francis, who is known for frugality, turned that vehicle down. The Leaf fits Vatican City’s goal of being the first state to be completely powered by renewable energy. Workhorse says that fleets want to buy their W-15 electric pickup truck, Work Truck (March 7, 2017) writes. Workhorse claims that fleets have sent letters of intent to buy 2,150 trucks when the company starts making them later this year. The trucks will have a range of 80 miles on a charge. The New York Times chronicles not only the decline in incentives for electric cars, but the increase of state and local fees on them in a report called “Behind the Quiet State-by-State Fight Over Electric Vehicles” (Tabuchi, March 11, 2017). At one time 25 states offered incentives for electric cars, now only 16 offer them. In nine states there are bills that will require electric car owners to pay extra fees to register them. While many of the state legislatures say the intent of these electric car fees is to make up revenue lost from nonpayment of gas taxes, The Times says that some of these bills are supported by the Koch brothers’ Americans for Properity and the Independence Institute, which is financed by petrochemical companies. New York is one state going against the trend. It recently began offering a $2,000 rebate.2 If you live in Blaine County, Idaho, you have through May 31 to get a deal on a Nissan Leaf or Chevy Volt, the Idaho Mountain Express (March 9, 2017) expresses. The Leaves are on sale for 30% off, while