GAFFNEY, S.C. – Fleets looking to deploy environmentally-friendly electric delivery vehicles in their fleet can now do so without the substantial up-front cost, thanks to a new program from Freightliner Custom Chassis Corp. (FCCC) and Enova.

The Green for Free program, announced today, allows fleets in Canada and the US to purchase electric vehicles for the same price as similar diesel-powered vehicles. The fleet can then use the fuel and maintenance savings achieved over time to cover the incremental expense for the technology, the companies announced.

The program covers FCCC’s all-electric walk-in van chassis powered by Enova’s electric drive system. The companies say delivery fleets with set routes will be ideal candidates for the program, since they have predictable drive routes and return home each night for charging.

FCCC says it’s ready to provide immediate volume, which will help drive down the costs of components such as batteries. The delivery vehicles will be deployed into “disciplined duty cycles” where they will utilize 80% of the battery daily, FCCC says. The chassis has a GVWR of 14,000-19,500 lbs.

“FCCC and Enova recognize that the Green For Free program is necessary in order to make all-electric vehicles more affordable, and therefore more accessible, to fleets,” said Bob Harbin, FCCC president. “We want to help those fleets interested in reducing their energy consumption and environmental impact by enabling them to purchase more alternative-fuel vehicles at one time because of the reduced upfront costs.”

The companies are touting the Green for Free program as the first that will eliminate the incremental costs associated with buying and operating all-electric vehicles, aside from those funded by government.

The companies plan to deploy 3,000 alternative fueled vehicles within a two-year period beginning no later than the third quarter of 2012 as part of the program.

“This business model has the potential to stimulate tremendous and rapid growth, helping achieve economies of scale through cost reduction, resulting in an excellent value proposition for the commercial fleet operator,” said Mike Staran, Enova president and CEO. “Enova has been delivering proven electric drive systems to a diverse set of domestic and international customers and has the distinction of seeing more of its green drive systems on the road than any of its competitors. The company continues to build on more than 20 years of innovation and traces its roots back to General Motors’ EV1 electric car.”