Government announces £30m electric car research funding

The government today announced £30m-worth of research funding for companies developing electric cars, including plans for the rollout of 100 electric test cars in UK towns and a pledge to ensure that the development of an electric car charging infrastructure is not hampered by the planning system.

Business secretary Peter Mandelson said the measures would help to create a million green motoring jobs by 2030.

"Investment in greener motoring forms part of our plan to put the UK at the forefront of the low-carbon revolution," he said. "We know our automotive sector has a global reputation for taking forward new technology and we want the UK to be at the heart of developments in electric vehicles."

The research funding will be distributed through three competitions for which electric car firms are invited to bid.

Under the Ultra Low Carbon Vehicle Demonstration competition, £10m will be up for grabs for a company to provide 100 demonstration electric cars at a number of locations around the UK by the end of 2009. A second wave of demonstrations will then take place after following feedback on the initial early pilot projects.

It will be accompanied by a second competition providing up to £10m for business-led research into technologies related to the development of a national charging infrastructure – seen as one of the main barriers to a low-carbon transport system.

Finally, the third competition will provide up to £10m funding for any wider research into low-carbon vehicle technologies.

The competitions are to be funded by the Technology Strategy Board as part of its £100m five-year scheme to get electric vehicles on the UK's roads.

Separately, the Department for Transport (DfT) announced today that 10 firms have been shortlisted to bid to provide electric and low-carbon vans to local councils and other public sector bodies, such as Royal Mail.

Ford, Mercedes-Benz, Citroen, Ashwoods, Land Rover, Modec, Smiths, LDV, Nissan and Allied Vehicles make up the shortlist for the project, which transport secretary Geoff Hoon said would help kickstart the market in electric vans.

"Vans make up about 15 per cent of road transport emissions in the UK, and their emissions are rising more than any other mode of road transport," he said. "In the public sector there is considerable demand for vans, so we want to use our spending power to lead the way in developing lower carbon options that will appeal across the board."

Evert Geursten, co-founder of the Nice car company which sells a range of electric cars and vans including the Meag City, welcomed the developments. "Despite the economic downturn, government knows it can't afford to postpone action on climate change," he said. "Electric vehicles are emissions-free, but also a recession-busting form of transport."