Dallas Utility (ONCOR) May Test electric Cars for Ford

[kjackson227]

Dallas utility Oncor may test electric cars for Ford

01:54 PM CDT on Wednesday, May 13, 2009
By ELIZABETH SOUDER / The Dallas Morning News
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Ford Motor Co. is expected to apply for federal stimulus money on Wednesday for a test of electric vehicles that would include Dallas utility Oncor.

Oncor, a unit of Energy Future Holdings, would get about 67 Ford plug-in hybrid and electric vehicles for the utility's fleet. The company is one of about a dozen utilities across Texas and the U.S. that would use the electric cars and trucks and report back to Ford on how they work.

The deal also allows EFH to test its theory that electric cars make sense in combination with cheap wind power at night. This requires Oncor's new high-tech electricity meters that allow consumers to get a lower rate if they plug in at night.

"We've been trying to engage with some automobile manufacturer, and let's face it, a couple have had other things on their mind," said Don Clevenger, vice president of external affairs for Oncor.

Oncor would get many of the cars for free and must commit to invest $15 million to install high-tech meters and build recharging stations.

The company already has a program to install the new meters across its territory, so the test would end up costing Oncor about $1 million, a sliver of the utility's annual budget.

The utility would then try to negotiate a cheaper nighttime rate with its electricity provider. (Oncor doesn't use sister company TXU Energy; it got a lower rate from Liberty Power.)

Oncor would get to keep the electric vehicles for three years, hardly a boon to the fleet of 2,500.

Ford has committed to bring four electric vehicles to market by 2012, and chairman Bill Ford said during the Detroit Auto Show early this year that he aims to "speed the development and acceptance" of electric vehicles.

Clevenger said Ford would offer utilities four or five types of vehicles – a light commercial delivery van, a small sedan, a small sport utility vehicle and two medium-heavy trucks.

If Ford wins the stimulus grant, the utilities could get the vehicles as early as 2010, he said.

[Honeycombe8]

1. This is a step forward. Glad to hear it. It'll be expensive, tho, I suspect.

Although like anything, the cost should go down as the vehicles become more popular and more of them are made.