Modec is continuing its quest for world domination having made the jump across the Irish sea. In both Northern Ireland and the Republic proper, the electric truck company has good news to report. First, in the Republic the company has announced its official distributor will be the Ohm Group. Already an importer and an exclusive distributor of internationally branded cars and commercial vehicles for the past 35 years, Ohm will operate the franchise under the name "Modec Ireland" and begin the program with demonstrators in Dublin. They join 6 dealerships in London and Modec Netherlands to become the 8th outlet to supply the electric delivery truck.

Speaking of deliveries, Britain's largest retailer, Tesco, has launched a fleet of Modec delivery vehicles in Northern Ireland. The trucks will be used to bring customers' orders straight to their doors. After beginning with a pilot fleet at its Shrewsbury location last year and receiving lots of "hugely positive" feedback from customers, the company continues to reduce its carbon footprint with this latest rollout. Says Tesco manager Maxine Thelwell, "Not only are the new vans carbon neutral and pollution free they are also very quiet - a double benefit for urban environments. The introduction of the Modec vans is the next step in our commitment to reducing energy consumption." That's great for Ireland but we can't help but wonder when they will make the jump across the Atlantic and be offered up for sale as well as for show and tell.

[Source: Modec via Green Car Congress]

We have featured lots of electric car conversions here on AutoblogGreen but until now there hasn't been very much in the way of hybrid conversions. Connaught Engineering, devisors of the hot little Type D hybrid (which should begin series production later this year) have taken the technology from their car and tweaked it to be retro-fitted to existing vehicles. An interesting proposition indeed.

According to a press release (PDF) on their website, Tesco is going to give the Connaught HYBRID+ system a go, starting with seven diesel Ford Transits. Over a period of six months, the home delivery vans will be tested thoroughly and if the results are favorable it is expected that Tesco will hybridize their entire Transit stable. Duncan Vavangas of Tesco is quoted as saying that the company is dedicated to reducing their carbon output and "transport is a key area and in addition to supporting new vehicle technologies we are keen to embrace affordable retro fit systems that save fuel and reduce CO₂ emissions on our current fleet of home delivery vehicles." Tesco can back up their commitment to new energy-saving vehicle technology with evidence from their use of Modec all-electric trucks.

The Connaught Engineering HYBRID+ system avoids the use of heavy batteries and combines regenerative braking with super capacitors to reduce fuel use by 25 percent. The system will be on display at the Commercial Vehicle Show in the NEC in Birmingham, England from April 15-17.

[Source: Connaught Engineering / The Commercial Vehicle Show]

British supermarket chain Tesco, the fourth-largest retail chain in the world, is teaming up with Los Angeles-based Solar Integrated Technologies to build what is claimed to be the world's biggest roof-top solar panel installation. Solar Integrated won the $13 million contract to install solar panels on the roof of Tesco USA's new distribution center in Riverside, California.

The 2 MW Building-Integrated Photovoltaic (BIPV) system will cover 500,000 square feet of the 640,000 square footage of roof space at the facility and is set to provide one fifth of the depot's power supply. This will effectively reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 1,200 tons per annum. Solar Integrated Technologies has previously provided BIPV solutions for other large corporations including Frito-Lay (100 kW at one facility) and Cola-Cola (329kW at one facility).

This is not the first example of Tesco taking the lead in reducing their environmental impacts, just two weeks ago they pledged to set an environmentally friendly example to its millions of customers by spending more than 500 million pounds ($987 million), cutting prices on energy-efficient products and reducing pollution. Previously, Tesco reduced their energy consumption per square foot by 35 percent over the eight years to 2006.

Running a chain of petrol stations in addition to their supermarket chain, Tesco is also the United Kingdom's market leader in the sales of biofuels. Their sales of biofuel blends will see emissions of greenhouse gases, primarily carbon dioxide, cut by more than 70,000 tonnes per annum.

Tesco has embraced biofuels in their own distribution fleet, announcing last month that is now running run three-quarters of its fleet on a B50 biodiesel blend which is made from 50 percent biodiesel and 50 percent petroleum diesel. The Tesco fleet of 2,000 lorries will be the first major fleet in the U.K. to use B50. The reduction in the whole-of-life emissions through the move to B50 is equivalent to the removal of over 20,000 medium sized cars off the road.

Last year Google made headlines by announcing that they would install around 9,000 solar panels at their corporate campus as parking shades and on roofs to provide 1.6-megawatts of solar power - enough to cover 30 percent of Google's power needs.

Analysis: Corporate solar is a growth industry providing companies with an opportunity to reduce their often massive electricity bills while highlighting their green credentials. Expect to see more and more companies with a reputation for aggressively focusing on their bottom line to install BIPV systems which will have a positive impact on the grid as a whole.

As Michael Brylawski of the Rocky Mountain Institute said in part three of his feature interview, "(plug-in hybrid electric vehicles) PHEVs could form a synergy of sort with 'intermittent' renewables like wind and solar... PHEVs being plugged in at night, and quite possibly at the office during the day, could offer a strong alternative for buffering renewables." Increased renewable electricity generation goes hand in hand with the take-up of PHEVs providing a holistic alternative to simply generating enough electricity to meet peak demand and wasting the rest.

Related:

• Interview with Michael Brylawski of RMI
• Google to build solar car ports at headquarters
• Portugal wants 45% renewable electricity output and 10% of all fuels to be biofuels

[Source: Reuters]

The environment has lept into the spotlight over the last year in a way we haven't seen before. Global warming and green house gas emissions have moved beyond a theory to be a call to arms for governments, business and individuals alike. As we all know, transport has a huge impact on green house gas emissions like carbon dioxide. In the United Kingdom, a number of new polices have recently been introduced to tax transport and encourage the use of more fuel efficient means to move around. A major report has proposed the implementation of a road pricing scheme to ease congestion and cut emissions while the U.K. government has announced plans to double taxes on air travel, increase petroleum fuel taxes and simultaneously lower biodiesel fuel taxes.

This is but one example of governments around the world moving to offer tax breaks and subsidies to promote the far more carbon-neutral biofuels of ethanol and biodiesel. Under the United Kingdom's Renewable Transport Fuels Obligation, five percent of transport fuel sold by 2010 must come from renewable sources. This relatively small percentage is expected to cut carbon emissions by an amazing 1m tonnes, equivalent to taking 1m cars off the road.

Businesses are getting behind emissions reductions schemes as well, for example, the giant Tesco supermarket chain is currently trailing a system developed by Clean Air Power, which enables its truck fleet to run on a mixture of natural gas and diesel. Not only does this allow Tesco to meet local emissions regulations, but they will save considerably on their fuel bill as well. The chance to improve the bottom line will always get a company's attention, but often its individual employees that bring such opportunities into focus for business. If you're working for a company, make sure you take a look around for a chance to save them money, and your environment as well.

Related:

• London parking authority setting fees based on CO2 emissions
• Britain's National Farmer's Union says biofuels pose no threat to UK food production
• Rent a green (tomato) car in London

[Source: The Guardian]

Tesco is biggest supermarket chain in the UK and starting next month, three quarters of their delivery fleet will be running on B50 biodiesel. Tesco has 2,000 trucks and vans in their fleet right now, and the change to B50 will reduce their green house gas emissions by 70,000 tonnes per year. Tesco is following the trend of other British companies that are facing pressure from consumers to be more environmentally friendly. This includes their business operations as well as the products they sell which now include more locally produced meat and produce as well as more organic products. Tesco is also selling biofuels, including biodiesel and ethanol, from the filling stations at their stores.

[Source: BBC]

How soon before the Indy 500 allows diesels to return? The motorsports governing body in the United Kingdom has just added a class for diesel cars in the British Rally Championship. The BRC Diesel Cup will showcase diesel-powered vehicles in the 2007 Tesco 99 Octane MSA series. The class will give auto manufacturers another opportunity to market diesel products to enthusiasts, and there should be some technology advancements resulting from the program. No mention if biodiesel will be allowed.

[Source: Energy Efficient Motorsports]