Battery manufacturer Axeon, along with partners Ricardo and Allied Vehicles, and co-funded by the Technology Strategy Board have been successful in developing a new battery which promises to improve range by as much as 35% compared to existing technologies, for the same weight.

Back in 2009, the Technology Strategy Board handed over £680k of funding for the project to develop a high energy density battery system. The resulting battery uses Nickel Cobalt Manganese (NCM) which theoretically requires 50% less volume and 30% less mass compared to conventional Lithium Iron Phosphate cells.

A key aim of the project was to confirm that these cell level benefits pass through to the battery pack level when taking into account overall packaging, cell retention, cooling and interconnects, Battery Management System (BMS) components and overall system functionality. A demonstrator of the battery system has now been deployed into a Allied Vehicles test vehicle, with the results of improved range and performance, and utilises NCM ‘pouch’ cells packaged in modular building blocks. Axeon believes that this modular design will allow them to support rapid prototyping into a range of vehicles with reduced development time.

Lawrence Berns, CEO of Axeon said: “This project has been a remarkable success and reinforces Axeon’s position as a leading provider of advanced battery technology.  This new battery represents a real step forward in the development of electric vehicles and is highly versatile, being suitable for applications for many vehicle manufacturers and across a wide range of platforms.”

John Laughlin, the Technology Strategy Board’s Low Carbon Vehicles programme manager, said: "We are delighted that our investment in this consortium’s project has yielded such impressive results, as the size and weight of batteries relative to their capacity has been a barrier to the wider take-up of electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles. Investing in such cutting-edge development helps to put the UK at the forefront of low carbon vehicle technology.”

Ricardo chief technology and innovation officer, Professor Neville Jackson, said, "Ricardo is proud to been involved in this landmark project, which has allowed us to supply and develop our expertise in advanced battery management. The new battery will improve the potential for more widespread vehicle electrification, a process that has the potential to significantly reduce global dependence on fossil fuels and minimize carbon dioxide emissions.”

Allied Vehicles’ Managing Director, Paul Nelson said: “We are very excited about the possibilities afforded by this new battery technology and what this can offer our customers.  We are now actively looking at opportunities to deploy this technology into our vehicles.”

All the project partners are now actively discussing the next steps for this exciting new breakthrough.

Glasgow City Council has added ten new all-electric vans to its fleet, sourced from the city’s own Allied Electric.

The vehicles, handed over by Allied Electric’s Managing Director, Paul Nelson, are the first of 40 trial vehicles which will be built by Allied Electric for the local authority. The cars will be tested throughout the city as part of a £3.8million project led by the electric commercial specialist. 

The initial 10 Peugeot eExpert cars will be followed by a further 30 Peugeot ePartners, scheduled for delivery in September 2010.

The trial is part of the Low Carbon Vehicle Demonstrator initiative, a £25m project funded by the UK Government’s Technology Strategy Board and the Department for Transport to create test beds around the UK for more than 340 low carbon vehicles.

The Glasgow consortium is one of eight national ultra low carbon vehicle demonstration projects in the programme.

Alongside Allied Electric and Glasgow City Council, partners in the Glasgow project include Dundee battery manufacturer Axeon, Scottish Power, Strathclyde University and Scottish Enterprise.

The trial vehicles, which have a battery range of between 80 and 100 miles, will be integrated into the council’s existing fleet and that of other partner organisations to gather feedback on the viability of including these vehicles in fleets long-term.

The vehicles will be used for a variety of purposes within Glasgow City Council including site visits for planning officers, social workers making home visits and staff that visit various schools in the city. Plans are also in place for electric vehicles to be trialled through partner organisations such as the fire service and the Scottish Government, with use also scheduled for other consortium members.

Councillor Ruth Simpson, executive member for sustainability and the environment, said: “Taking delivery of these vehicles today brings us another step closer in our quest to lower the city’s carbon emissions.

“The Council is keen to lead by example to drive environmental change in the city and we hope if the trial proves successful, to include electric vehicles permanently within the council’s fleet.”

Scottish electric vehicle producer, Allied Vehicles, has launched two new electric vans and people carriers.

Its electric vehicle wing, Allied Electric, which is known for its work in converting Peugeot commercials to run on electric power now adds two more of the brand’s models to its portfolio.

The eBipper van and ePartner vans and cars provide zero emissions transport, combined with a practical payload and load area based on the already successful Peugeot Bipper, Partner and Tepee models.

All eBipper and ePartner models have a range of 65 miles. The eBipper offers users a 375kg payload and 2.8 cubic metres of loadspace while the ePartner provides 549kg of payload and a 3.7 cubic metre load area.

They join the eExpert and eBoxer van, which have been designed and manufactured by Allied in conjunction with Peugeot.

Charging is available through a domestic power socket or, in the case of the Partner, a dual-mode charger which can access either domestic single-phase or commercial three-phase supply. A three year warranty is provided on both the vehicle and the Axeon batteries.

After 18 months of development and half a million pounds of investment, the Glasgow based company – which is the UK’s largest producer of wheelchair accessible vehicles – has orders for nearly 50 of the EVs as more companies and government bodies commit to reducing their vehicle carbon footprint.

Allied Vehicle’s Managing Director Paul Nelson comments: “The launch of these two new zero emission vehicles completes our full range of Peugeot LCVs, from Bipper to Boxer.  Electric vehicle orders have been building steadily and we hope to tap into further market segments with the introduction of these smaller all-electric models.

“More companies have to reduce their carbon footprint on urban deliveries and our electric product range meets all these demands.”

Prices are expected to be announced in the next few weeks.

The City of London Corporation has become one of the first local authorities to benefit from the Department for Transport’s (DfT) Low Carbon Vehicle Procurement Programme (LVCVPP), after it took delivery of an all-electric van.

The van produced by Allied Electric, is a battery-powered adapted Peugeot Boxer, capable of travelling over 100 miles and can be recharged in around six to eight hours.

City of London-the local authority responsible for the famous ‘square mile’ of the city-adds the vehicle to its library fleet. The new lithium-ion powered eBoxer van will be used for its library operations based at the Barbican Library, situated in the heart of the city. Applications will include transporting books, furniture, and other materials between the city’s libraries and providing a home delivery library service to local residents.

The programme, which is managed for the Office for Low Emission Vehicles by Cenex, is providing £20m of funding to selected public sector partners to help towards the purchase of low carbon vehicles.

John Lake, Head Librarian at Barbican Library, comments: “The purchase of an all-electric vehicle is an important step in providing environmentally friendly services within the city and has been carefully considered as part of the City of London’s Transport Coordination Group’s planning process.”

Allied Electric’s Managing Director, Paul Nelson, adds: “The Low Carbon Vehicle Procurement Programme is a vital step in helping support and encourage the transition to all-electric vehicles. I’m delighted that one of the first vehicles operating in the programme will be providing an important public service at the heart of the city.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown paid a visit to Glasgow last week to see the work of one of Britain’s leading producers of electric vehicles.

According to Allied Electric, the Prime Minister was full of praise for innovation the firm showed in its work.

Part of the Allied Vehicles group, Allied Electric played host to the PM as he explored its manufacturing plant in Glasgow, meeting company bosses and blue collar workers on the factory floor.

Allied Electric is known for its work converting Peugeot commercials to operate on electric motors. Its parent firm specialises in producing niche automotive products including wheelchair accessible cars, hackney taxis and community transport minibuses in conjunction with many of the leading carmakers.

Electric Future

The firm has now set its sights on becoming the UK’s leading supplier of all-electric vehicles (EVs) for the light commercial market.

It has already won government-backed contracts for its electric Peugeot Boxer vans, which will operate in various locations around the UK. Allied will also supply electric Peugeot Partner and Peugeot Expert cars and MPVs for a trial project supported by Glasgow City Council, Scottish Power, Strathclyde University and Dundee battery-maker Axeon.

“The Prime Minister was particularly excited about our work in electric vehicles,” said managing director Paul Nelson.

“All-electric vehicles are very much part of the shape of things to come but it’s still a relatively new concept to most people, so having the endorsement of the Prime Minister can only help raise the profile of EVs, which produce zero emissions while in operation.

Nelson added: “Range and functionality of electric vehicles has advanced rapidly in the past two to three years, making them a genuine alternative, especially for city centre operations.

The Heinz approach to electric vehicles

“Our strategy here is to be at the forefront of a new market – the Heinz of electric commercial vehicles if you like.

“It’s a rapidly moving technology field and we’ve got several exiting new developments in the pipeline already, so it looks sure to be an interesting ride.”

Speaking at a business dinner later that evening Brown praised the enthusiasm and commitment of the workforce at Allied, together with the company’s innovative approach.

Former Fleet Director for Peugeot, Steve Harris, has been appointed as Business Development Manager with electric vehicle manufacturer AlliedZEV.

British born Steve, from Solihull, started his career in the motor industry as an apprentice with British Leyland before working his way into fleet sales with the Rover Group. Steve was then involved with Land Rover, where his main responsibilities lay with their finance operations, before moving to head up BMW’s Southern African Sales Department.

Steve joined AlliedZEV in March this year from Peugeot where he had been based in Paris as International Fleet Sales Director before returning to the UK as Fleet Director. Steve has joined David Speak, previously of Smith Electric Vehicles, and Colin McQueen who has worked with the Allied Vehicles Group for 3 years, as part of the AlliedZEV sales and development team.

Steve said: “I am delighted to have made the smooth transition from Peugeot to AlliedZEV and look forward to the exciting challenges that lay ahead of me in this position.”

 We’re just two months away from the official launch of electric taxis – but if you can’t wait that long, it’s possible to take a glimpse at them now.

Allied vehicles, a manufacturer which builds thousands of taxis every year, has put its E7 electric taxi on display in the electric car village at the British International Motor Show. The finished product represents three years of hard work by the company which is now hoping to engage with local authority partners in a bid to establish recharging stations which can help bring the electric taxis to the average high street in the UK.

The electric taxis will be officially available from October and Allied chairman Gerry Facenna is confident that the vehicle can provide a solution both to urban emissions and running costs for taxi owners.

He said: “For the majority of taxi drivers, the key issue when buying a new cab is usually the cost to run, service and maintain their vehicle. In the current economic climate drivers are looking for ways to reduce costs.”

The E7 uses lithium-ion batteries, which provide a range of 100mph on a single charge as well as a top speed of 60mph. There is no carbon, particulates, or other emissions, and the taxi is eligible for a 100% vehicle excise duty reprieve helping to drive down costs for motorists. As an added bonus, the vehicle also includes full wheelchair access, retractable sidesteps and a specially designed under-floor wheelchair ramp for improved accessibility.  

An electric taxi could be the solution that cabbies are looking for as fuel costs; Vehicle Excise Duty and Congestion Charges continue to rise. A zero emission taxi will be available in late 2008 with significantly lower running costs than the traditional black cab.

The company behind the electric taxi, Glasgow based Allied Vehicles, builds thousands of taxis each year the new E7 taxi will appear in the electric pavilion for the entire Motor Show.

Available from October 2008, the electric taxi is the outcome of three years research and development by Allied, which is already looking for local authority partners to install recharging networks locally to help reduce urban emissions.

The E7 is powered wholly by cutting edge Lithium-ion batteries, which have been developed and supplied by Europe’s leading independent manufacturer, Dundee based Axeon Holdings plc. These give the electric E7 a range of up to 100 miles from a single charge and a top speed of 60mph. Producing no carbon, particulates or other pollutant emissions, the E7 is eligible for a 100% discount from vehicle excise duty, as well as reduced running costs.

With rising fuel prices an increasing dilemma for taxi drivers, the electric E7 is cheaper to run than a traditional black cab. Allied’s confidence in the technology is underlined with batteries featuring a six-year warranty and the base vehicle featuring a two-year unlimited mileage Peugeot warranty.

Gerry Facenna, Chairman of Allied Vehicles, said “Taxis and their drivers have a hard life and with the rising cost of diesel at the moment, it is only going to get worse. For the majority of taxi drivers, the key issue when buying a new cab is usually the cost to run, service and maintain their vehicle. In the current economic climate drivers are looking for ways to reduce costs and electric power offers an ideal solution, especially for congested urban areas where traffic is stop-start for much of the day. We’ve had a positive response to electric vehicles from many local authorities, both in the UK and in Europe. However it’s a shame that London looks set to miss out, especially since its famous taxi fleet is currently responsible for 4% of all emissions in the capital.”

The E7 will cost £39,450, a London style black taxi based on a TX4 silver automatic is currently in the region of £35,455 on the road.