Ceres Commits To Support the Expansion of Fleet Electrification as Part of the Biden Administration’s Plan To Accelerate Electric Vehicle Growth

April 18, 2023 /3BL Media/ - Ceres announced today a new commitment to expand its work to support major companies in the transition to electric vehicles (EV), as part of its participation in the White House’s EV Acceleration Challenge. The challenge is designed to accelerate the U.S. transition to EVs and meet the Biden administration’s goal of having 50% of all new passenger vehicle sales be electric by 2030.

In response to the administration’s call urging public and private sector leaders to dedicate resources to accelerate the nation’s transition to EVs, Ceres committed to support the 32+ major global and U.S. member companies of its Corporate Electric Vehicle Alliance in transitioning to EVs.

Specifically, Ceres plans to develop a resource and advocacy guide for companies to promote sustainable EV supply chain practices and provide a platform for peer-to-peer dialogue on commercial fleet electrification best practices by the end of 2023. Alliance members, which include Amazon, DHL, Hertz, and Otis, among others, collectively own, lease, or operate over 2.5 million on-road vehicles in the U.S. alone.

“Ceres is honored to be included in the White House’s new round of major EV commitments. The tide is certainly turning on internal combustion engines and Ceres and the Corporate EV Alliance are proud to be part of the shift to zero emission vehicles and a cleaner transportation system,” said Sara Forni, director of clean vehicles at Ceres, and leader of the Ceres Corporate Electric Vehicle Alliance.

Ceres is working to decarbonize the transportation sector through the work it is leading with the Alliance and through its Ceres Ambition 2030 initiative, an effort to decarbonize the six highest emitting sectors in the U.S. economy.

Ceres is among the dozens of participants that announced new public and private sector commitments in April as part of the White House’s EV Acceleration Challenge. Ceres also applauds the ambitious new EV commitments made by five Alliance members for the challenge:

• Amazon: Announced it has rolled out over 3,000 electric delivery vehicles as part of its commitment to bring 100,000 electric delivery vehicles to the road by 2030.
• Exelon: Expand its customer-facing tools and resources in the second half of 2023 by offering a comprehensive fleet electrification assessment service through its EVsmart Program designed to help customers and businesses navigate vehicle electrification, create fleet electrification plans, and estimate total costs of ownership savings.
• Hertz: Substantially increase its electric vehicle rentals this year—forecasting nearly two million EV rentals in 2023, approximately five times the number of EV rentals in 2022—and extend the electric vehicle experience to leisure and business travelers and rideshare drivers across the country.
• Siemens: Install charging stations across the U.S. at its facilities and employees’ homes to support the electric conversion of its 10,000-vehicle fleet by 2030 and to set a requirement that 10% of parking spaces include EV charging stations at all new company facility construction projects.
• Uber: Reach 400 million EV miles driven on its platform in the U.S. by the end of 2023 by distributing resources through its Green Future program to help hundreds of thousands of drivers transition to EVs and through its partnerships with automakers, rental companies, and charging companies.

Ceres looks forward to continuing to support major corporate fleets as they transition to clean zero emission vehicles and develop a robust domestic EV supply chain that is responsibly and sustainably sourced.

About Ceres
Ceres is a nonprofit organization working with the most influential capital market leaders to solve the world’s greatest sustainability challenges. Through our powerful networks and global collaborations of investors, companies, and nonprofits, we drive action and inspire equitable market-based and policy solutions throughout the economy to build a just and sustainable future. For more information, visit ceres.org and follow @CeresNews.

Media Contact: Reginald Zimmerman