Geely EVs to Enter Japanese Commercial Vehicle Market

3DOM, a Yokohama-based battery startup, announced on Thursday it will launch a commercial fleet service using electric vehicles from China’s Geely Auto Group, joining a growing line of services aimed at helping businesses reduce their carbon footprint.

3DOM added that it will work with utilities to use wind power and other green energy sources to produce the electricity needed to power Geely’s light commercial trucks. The company said that the operating costs of this car rental service will be comparable to that of a gasoline-powered fleet.

The EV fleet will consist of about 7,500 vehicles. Several companies, including express delivery service companies and supermarket operators, are considering using its services, the battery startup said.

The company added that it will provide carbon-neutral electric vehicle services through subscription or lease, so that users can avoid high purchase costs.

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Japanese companies are facing increasing pressure from investors and the public to reduce their carbon footprints. Chinese automakers are taking the lead in Japan to introduce relatively low-cost pure electric vehicles.

Japan’s leading express delivery company, Sagawa Express, plans to start replacing all of its 7,200 business-use small cars with electric vehicles supplied by Guangxi Automobile Group this year. Another company, SBS Holdings, plans to use electric trucks produced by Dongfeng Motor Group.