Army Leases Electric Vehicles
In what is the single largest acquisition of its kind ever, Secretary of the Army Pete Geren announced Jan. 12 that the Army plans to lease thousands of neighborhood electric vehicles (NEVs).
"The Army is committed to substantially reducing the greenhouse gas emissions through our acquisition of Neighborhood Electric Vehicles," Geren said. "This historic acquisition will constitute the largest acquisition of electric vehicles not just in the military, but in the entire country."
The announcement was made during an acceptance ceremony at Fort Myer, where six of the new vehicles will be incorporated into base operations. The NEVs are part of a more comprehensive and far-reaching energy security strategy designed to save energy and money and to wean the Army from fossil fuels. The Army is focused on harnessing renewable and alternative energy sources like geothermal, solar and biomass conversion.
The 4,000 non-tactical electric vehicles will be used on Army bases for passenger transport, security patrol, and maintenance and delivery services.
In addition to the vehicles delivered to Fort Myer, the Army will lease 794 more NEVs this year; 1,600 will be leased in 2010, and 1,600 leased in 2011. A General Services Administration announcement in FedBizOps.Gov solicits NEV manufacturers to help provide the vehicles to meet the Army's goal of 4,000 NEVs in three years.
These first six electric vehicles are manufactured by the Global Electric Motorcars division of Chrysler Corporation. But dozens of other companies that manufacture electric vehicles can compete to meet Army vehicular requirements in the future.