Smith Electric Vehicles appoints Icelandic distributor

Nov 18 2010 by John Hill, The Journal

SMITH Electric Vehicles has appointed a distributor to help it make electric vans and trucks more popular in Iceland.

The company, which has a UK base in Washington, has named Northern Lights Energy as its distributor for Iceland, Greenland and the Faroe Islands. NLE is due to take its first delivery of vehicles early next year, which will then be trialled by major fleet operators.

NLE has initiated the Icelandic National EV Project, which includes stakeholders from many of the country’s most influential companies. It aims to build a national charging infrastructure and make use of renewable energy resources rather than foreign oil. Kevin Harkin, sales director for Smith Electric Vehicles, said: “Electric commercial vehicles make perfect operational and economic sense for Iceland. The island's commercial fleet is almost wholly engaged in low mileage operations, while the high price of foreign oil imports means electric vehicles can deliver substantial whole life cost savings.”

The Washington operations are currently owned by manufacturer Tanfield, but it is expected to sell the UK wing of its Smith Electric Vehicles division to US offshoot Smith Electric Vehicles US, in which Tanfield owns a 40% share. The US arm, which has secured a £20m grant from its government, secured a 60-day exclusivity option to buy out the division last month.