The first plug-in hybrid and ethanol vehicles in Iceland will be used next month as part of “Driving Sustainability 07,” an international conference on new energy sources and eco-friendly transport solutions.
At the conference, held in Reykjavík September 17 to 18, experts from Iceland, the US, Switzerland, France, Denmark and Sweden will give presentations on the possibility of using ethanol, methane, hydrogen, plug-in hybrid technology and electricity in transport and how Iceland can become a leader in this field.
During the conference, Iceland’s Minister of Finance Árni Mathiesen, will present the government’s policy on changes of tariffs and planned financial encouragement to increase eco-friendly vehicles and energy sources.
Iceland’s Minister of the Environment Thórunn Sveinbjarnardóttir will discuss how we can reduce CO2 emissions caused by transportation and submit the thesis: “Can Iceland become a leading nation in eco-friendly energy use in transportation?”
President of Iceland Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson will open the conference.
Plug-in hybrids run on both electricity and petrol. The vehicle is plugged into electricity to load the battery, which will last for driving up to 120 kilometers. When the car runs out of electricity, the petrol tank takes over as its energy source.
