e-Ride Industries EXV2 Arriving At Antarctica

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has begun testing the performance of two electric powered utility vehicles from e-Ride Industries under the extreme conditions of Antarctica.  The EXV2 models will face temperatures down to -50F at McMurdo Station.  If they perform well, the largely diesel powered fleet of vehicles at the station could start being replaced with more efficient and less resource intensive EVs.  The cost of transporting fuel to the station is expensive and there are pollution concerns in the largely pristine environment.  The station already has renewable solar and wind energy to power the vehicles.

The vehicles were equipped with insulation and heaters for the batteries.  The performance of the batteries in such cold conditions is the primary performance concern.  The vehicles also have data loggers and performance data will be captured for at least year.  They have been operational for a month already and are used daily, logging over 70 hours and 140 miles so far.  Learn more:  News.Thomasnet.com