Perhaps half of the email inquiries that we get boil down to a simple question: "How can I get a PHEV." We get other requests along the lines of "When can I convert my fleet of 10 or 100 vehicles." And since that time two years ago when Austin's City Council set aside $1 million in subsidies for the first available PHEVs, Plug-In Partners has accumulated many thousands of "soft" fleet orders. And Tesla Motors selling out its first 100 cars in only 3 weeks - at $100K each -- sends an important market signal too.

Now New York State has upped the ante with a $10 million purse for after-market conversions, described below. And we hope the US Department of Energy will go even larger-scale at some point to get demonstration fleets on the nation's roads. This may all inspire an auto-maker to consider turning their hybrids into PHEVs or bringing a new PHEV to market. (We've all heard that things are in the works at auto-makers, but it's all still intentions or rumors.)

The aftermarket conversion companies listed at http://www.calcars.org/­howtoget.html are accumulating long lists of interested customers, but are still in the development/prototype stage. Motivated by the funding offered, we cold see more companies enter the arena!

Announcement for: Program Opportunity Notice (PON) No. 1088

"New York State Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) Technology Initiative" $10,000,000 Available Funding

Multiple $100,000 Awards Anticipated for Stage 1 Projects with the Balance Available for Stage 2 Awards

Proposal Due Date: September 18, 2006

Program Summary: New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) Program Opportunity Notice (PON) 1088 seeks proposals for the New York State Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) Technology Initiative, aimed at accelerating the adoption and use of plug-in hybrid electric passenger vehicles in the State. The program will provide funding for businesses to develop, test, demonstrate, and ultimately supply to selected NYS government fleets the hardware and services necessary to convert existing State-owned hybrid electric passenger cars and light trucks to plug-in hybrid operation.

Proposals may be submitted by individual companies or teams. Proposals must include a description of two stages of a project. Stage 1 will encompass work to develop and deliver a "first-article" prototype for demonstration and test. Stage 2 will encompass the conversion of all or a segment of a selected NYS government fleet of existing hybrid electric vehicles.

NYSERDA will evaluate projects in two steps. The first evaluation will select companies or teams for funding under Stage 1. Multiple awards are anticipated. This evaluation will be conducted upon receipt of the Stage 1 proposals. Stage 1 proposals are required to fully describe the proposed technologies, services, and steps required to provide and validate the performance of the first-article prototypes. Stage 1 proposals must also include a preliminary outline and discussion of the anticipated fleet conversion phase, including initial budgetary cost estimates, that will comprise Stage 2. After successful proposers have been awarded the Stage 1 funding, and have qualified for Stage 2 participation through successful performance in Stage 1 they will be invited to submit a revised, full proposal for Stage 2 funding. Only proposers that have been awarded Stage 1 funding and are successful in meeting Stage 1 program objectives are eligible to compete for Stage 2 funding.

It is anticipated that NYSERDA will fund up to $100,000 per Stage 1 project. One or more awards are anticipated for Stage 2. For the Stage 1 project(s) selected for a Stage 2 award, NYSERDA funding per project will depend on the number of vehicles retrofit by the Stage 2 Contractors, cost and performance per vehicle, availability of funds, and other program factors. Cost sharing, while not required, will be considered in the evaluation criteria. Proposer(s) must present an effective strategy to commercialize the technology and deploy the product in New York State.

This announcement is not a solicitation for proposals. The full solicitation, including technical requirements, programmatic requirements, and instructions for preparing a proposal, can be obtained from the NYSERDA web site [49 pages at the bottom of] <www.nyserda.org/funding/funding.asp?i=2>.

Technical questions may be directed to: Joe Wagner (518-862-1090, ext. 3228; jrw@...) Frank Ralbovsky (518-862-1090, ext. 3260; fsr@...) Joe Tario (518-862-1090, ext. 3215; jdt@...) Richard Drake (518-862-1090, ext. 3258; rld@...)