The City of Sydney has taken delivery of what will be Australia’s first commercially available electric car – the Mitsubishi i-MiEV; which will be recharged using solar power.
“This electric car will be trialled as part of the City’s fleet and Sydneysiders will see it on a daily basis as our frontline staff deliver key services around the city,” Lord Mayor Clover Moore MP said.
The Mitsubishi i-MiEV has a range of up to 160 kilometres and a top speed of 130 kilometres per hour. It recharges in less than eight hours using a standard 15 amp power point. The power for the electric vehicle will come from Sydney Town Hall’s 240 Suntech Pluto solar panels. If the 48 kilowatt solar array was dedicated to the task, it would have enough capacity to supply 17 electric vehicles.
The use of the i-MiEV is a step towards City of Sydney’s commitment to reduce greenhouse emissions by 70 per cent by 2030.
The City of Sydney’s i-MiEV is one 40 electric vehicles leased to government departments, councils and companies around the nation ahead of its
release in Australia next year.
The City runs a fleet of 150 light vehicles, including 43 hybrid cars which use about 40 percent less fuel than convention vehicle and aims to reduce fleet emissions by 20% before 2014.
Earlier this year, the City also retired its Renewable Energy Certificates to help push Australia beyond the Federal Government’s 20 percent Renewable Energy Target.
