VT Power Company Converts Priuses To PHEVs

Green Mountain Power, of Colchester VT, has converted two of its Prius fleet vehicles into plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. The converted vehicles are charged using a 4 kW solar array and achieve about 100 mpg. The vehicles are used for local trips. The 5kWh battery pack takes about 5.5 hours to charge.

Green Mountain Power supplies about one-fourth of Vermont's population with electrical power. The company installed a solar array large enough to charge each vehicle for daily use. The company estimates that the converted vehicles will emit 70 percent less carbon dioxide than a conventional vehicle. The company has 11 Priuses in its fleet and is using the conversions to help predict the impact of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles on the power grid.

The company did not say how old the converted vehicles are or how much it cost to convert the vehicles to PHEVs, but any Prius manufactured in or after 2004 can be converted with an after-market kit.

Source and Photo: Green Mountain Power