14 DAY TRIAL // Yesterday, French multinational vehicle manufacturer Renault went public with the news that it had parted with as many as 30 all-electric Kangoo Z.E.s. The cars now find themselves in Uruguay, where they will be put to work helping reduce dangerous emissions.
On its website, the French vehicle manufacturer explains that the all-electric four-wheelers are now the property of state company UTE, which currently serves as Uruguay's electricity generator and distributor.
“These 30 electric Kangoo Z.E.s will be run by UTE, Uruguay’s generator and distributor of electricity, for missions in the capital Montevideo and elsewhere in the country,” Renault writes in a press release on the matter at hand.
Furthermore, “UTE, which generates, transmits and distributes electricity in Uruguay, took delivery of its new fleet of 30 Kangoo Z.E.s on Tuesday, July 15, 2014, following an order resulting from a tender process launched several months ago.”
State power company UTE will use these 30 vehicles to send its staff on missions either in Montevideo, Uruguay's current capital city, or in other parts of the country where assistance with electricity generation and distribution is needed.
Needless to say, UTE decided to acquire these vehicles not because it took such a fancy to their design that it simply had to add them to its fleet, but because the state power company is very much interested in improving on its ecological footprint.
These all-electric cars are expected to help the company reduce its yearly emissions to a considerable extent, i.e. by approximately 36 tonnes over the course of just one year of use. The four-wheelers will not only release no emissions when driven around, but will also be kept up and running by wind power.
Commenting on UTE's decision to add these cars to its fleet, Denis Barbier, senior vice president, Renault, and chairman of Americas Region, pointed out that, “This order is a further sign of the interest in the region for electric vehicles.”
“After previous deliveries in Brazil, Mexico, Argentina and Colombia, these Kangoo ZEs will serve as ambassadors for electric vehicles and for the Renault brand on the roads of Uruguay,” Denis Barbier went on to explain.
Uruguay is now in the process of shrinking its ecological footprint by investing heavily in green energy sources. It is estimated that, for the time being, renewables account for 84% of the country's electricity. What's more, the country hopes to soon have green sources meet 90% of its electricity demands.