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Please consider the following news release from the California
Air Resources Board: http://bit.ly/1LZLiOm
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

September 29, 2015

NEWS RELEASE 15-60

CONTACT:		

Alex Barnum, CalEPA
(916) 324-9670
Alex.Barnum@calepa.ca.gov


International Alliance on Zero-Emission Vehicles Grows to 11
Partners

As Market Reaches One Million Vehicles, Partnership Seeks to
Accelerate Global Adoption

NEW YORK – Broadening its efforts to fight climate change and
grow its clean energy economy, California is joining with 10
European and North American governments as founding partners of
an international alliance to accelerate global adoption of
zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs).

Members of the International ZEV Alliance, which together account
for more than a third of global electric vehicle sales, will
cooperate to set ambitious targets to drive ZEV deployment, share
data and best practice policies, and encourage other governments
to join them. An agenda for expanding collaboration is outlined
in a report released today (located at http://bit.ly/1Vlxh80) by
the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT).

In addition to California, founding members of the alliance
include The Netherlands, Norway and the United Kingdom in Europe;
Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, Oregon, Rhode Island and
Vermont in the United States; and Québec. The alliance was
launched last month, and the founding members were announced
today at a signing event at the Québec government office in New
York.

“Limiting the impact of climate change is only possible if we
transition to cleaner, more energy efficient vehicles,” said
California Secretary for Environmental Protection Matthew
Rodriquez. “We’re very pleased to be joining with many of the
leaders in this growing market, and we look forward to working
with them to put more drivers at the wheel of zero-emission
vehicles.”

The ICCT report, “Transition to a Global Zero-Emission Vehicle
Fleet: A Collaborative Agenda for Governments,” highlights how
the world’s leading electric vehicle markets are being shaped by
new and innovative public policies, including consumer incentives
and infrastructure investments. The report also identifies a
variety of ways that governments can improve collaboration to
accelerate ZEV adoption.

“In these early years in the transition, there is much to learn
from every region’s experience in the roll-out of zero emission
vehicles. Developing the new zero-emission vehicle market will
require global scale, in the tens of millions of vehicles, to
achieve lower cost and long-term success,” the report says.
“International collaboration will be a critical step toward
greater market volume and a long-term market transformation.”

This month, ICCT estimates that the number of plug-in electric
vehicles on the world’s roads reached one million – a major
milestone in the emergence of this new industry. The milestone
was achieved in about six years – several years faster than it
took for non-plug-in hybrid electric vehicles to reach the first
million in sales. (Read ICCT’s blog post on this subject here:
http://bit.ly/1jvetCe) But with global vehicles approaching two
billion, electric vehicle growth will have to ramp up
dramatically to achieve long-term climate goals. 

Members of the International ZEV Alliance are leading the way in
this transition. Although the 11 member countries, states and
province account for only seven percent of global car sales, they
represent 38 percent of the global market for electric vehicles –
thanks in large part to innovative government policies and
investments.

“These governments have been crucial to early adoption of
electric vehicles,” said Nic Lutsey, Program Director and author
of the ICCT report. The ICCT also serves as Secretariat to the
International ZEV Alliance. “Each government has helped grow the
early market with a mix of financial and non-financial
incentives, vehicle policy, consumer awareness and outreach, and
the installation of a charging infrastructure.”

The most comprehensive electric vehicle promotion actions
globally are seen in International ZEV Alliance markets, the ICCT
report found. In several of these markets, their actions are
resulting in electric vehicle deployment that is more than 10
times the average for electric vehicle sales internationally. 

“Norway has done a lot to spur the electric vehicle market
domestically,” said Jens Frølich Holthe, Political Advisor to
Norway’s Minister for Environment. “We see working together with
other proactive governments as a key to a global transition to an
electric fleet. The problem of climate change is clearly global,
and we see electric vehicles as one of the important global
climate solutions.”

All seven of the U.S. states joining the alliance are also
members of a multi-state task force to support electric vehicles
in the United States. Created in 2013, the task force is working
to implement a joint action plan that includes encouraging fleets
to acquire ZEVs, planning and investing in ZEV infrastructure,
and tracking progress toward the goal of a combined 3.3 million
ZEVs on U.S. highways by 2025. The International ZEV Alliance is
the next step in their commitment to accelerate deployment of
zero-emission vehicles.


Statements from International ZEV Alliance members:

Connecticut Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection
Robert Klee:
“Connecticut recognizes that in order to reach our 2050
greenhouse gas reduction targets we will have to address the
contribution of mobile sources to our emissions – which is just
over 40 percent – by transforming our vehicle fleet. We are eager
to work with California and our international partners to address
climate change and transform the global vehicle market to
zero-emission options for future generations – and Connecticut
remains committed to building out our publicly available electric
vehicle charging infrastructure and incentivizing the purchase of
plug-in vehicles through direct consumer rebates.”

Maryland Secretary of the Environment Ben Grumbles:
"Zero emission vehicles can deliver big gains for our environment
and economy.  Maryland embraces opportunities for environmental
progress through expanded markets, stronger partnerships, and
affordable options for consumers and infrastructure planners."

Vermont Secretary of Natural Resources Deb Markowitz:
“Vermont is pleased to join the International ZEV Alliance
because of our commitment to reducing our greenhouse gas
emissions, and because we know that this goal can best be
achieved by working in partnership with other governments as well
as with the private sector. A major source of carbon pollution in
Vermont comes from our transportation sector, and electric
vehicles are the cleanest cars on our roads today. Accelerating
the adoption of ZEVs by Vermonters is essential for meeting our
state’s climate and clean energy goals, reducing air pollution,
and insulating our economy from future volatility in oil
prices.”




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