PORTLAND, Ore., Sept. 24 OR-Toyota-RAV4-EV
PORTLAND, Ore., Sept. 24 /PRNewswire/ -- Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc.,
made a series of environmental announcements at its "Sustainable Mobility
Seminar" here today, including a plan to put four off-lease RAV4 electric
vehicles into operation in the Portland-area. The RAV4-EVs will help the city
and the state of Oregon develop an electric-charging infrastructure in
preparation for the arrival of future zero- and low-emission vehicles.
The Toyota Sustainable Mobility Seminar featured a series of presentations
by leading third party experts and company executives. Topics included: peak
liquid oil; the nexus of water land use and energy; intelligent transportation
systems; the CAFE and regulatory environment; urban design and green building
initiatives.
Portland State University will develop a program to use the four RAV4-EVs
as station cars to shuttle people from mass-transit terminals to downtown and
suburban locations. Portland General Electric (PGE) recently went on-line
with its first free-standing public electric-recharging station and has
announced the installation of five additional plug-in charging stations.
Toyota previously announced plans for a limited-volume placement program
for a new lithium-battery powered plug-in hybrid vehicle that will be leased
to fleet customers beginning in late 2009 in Japan, Europe and North America.
In addition, the company also has announced plans to launch an all-new battery
electric vehicle commuter car in the early 2010s.
"It's obvious that the next several years will see a growing number of
low-emission and no-emission vehicle options, particularly electric and hybrid
vehicles," said George Beard of PSU's Mark O. Hatfield School of Government.
"Our region's position in renewable energy and its leadership reputation in
urban sustainability make this partnership a natural for all involved."
Other announcements made at the Sustainable Mobility Seminar included:
-- Toyota plans to display a CNG-powered Camry hybrid concept vehicle at
the Los Angeles Auto Show.
-- The largest single roof solar power system in North America that will
go into operation in early October at Toyota's North American Parts Center
California, supplying nearly 60 percent of its electricity needs. The system
will cover nearly four football fields and avoid carbon dioxide emissions of
about 6.4 million pounds annually, equivalent to the annual CO2 emissions from
energy use of 255 homes.
-- Five more Toyota dealerships are poised to receive Leadership in
Energy and Environment Design (LEED) certification from the U.S. Green
Building Council (USGBC) before the end of the year and as many as 10 more
could be certified in 2009. To date, two Toyota dealerships are the only
dealerships in the country to have received LEED certification.
-- A more than 10 percent reduction in the cost of replacement hybrid
vehicles batteries. In addition, Toyota is studying the business case for
remanufacturing HV batteries in North America to further lower replacement
costs.
Those speaking at the conference included Dr. Peter Wells from NetFlex
Petroleum Consultants, Dr. Tim Barnett from Scipps Institute, Dr. John A.
Merson from Sandia National Laborites, Dr. Jan Kreider from the University of
Colorado and Gordan Feller from the Urban Age Institute.
Additional information on all the initiatives announced at the Sustainable
Mobility Seminar is available at http://pressroom.toyota.com.
CONTACTS: Toyota Environmental Communications
Jana Hartline (310) 468-7977
John Hanson (310) 468-4718
Media Web site: http://pressroom.toyota.com
Public Web site: http://www.toyota.com
TMS - 048 -08
SOURCE Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc.
