NEW YORK - FPL Group, Inc. and Duke Energy have committed to transition their company cars and trucks to plug-in hybrid or all-electric vehicles. The announcement was made during the Clinton Global Initiative's (CGI) fifth annual meeting in New York City.

The joint commitment represents more than 10,000 vehicles and potential revenues of at least $600 million for manufacturers who can produce viable plug-in electric vehicles. The conversion has the potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by more than 125,000 metric tons over the next 10 years.

Duke Energy and FPL Group will begin this transition in the coming years - with the goal that 100 percent of all new fleet vehicles will be plug-in electric vehicles or plug-in hybrid electric vehicles by 2020. In announcing their partnership, FPL Group and Duke Energy called for a wide variety of organizations to commit to greening their vehicle fleets, including corporations, governments, universities and other agencies. 

"The more organizations that join this initiative, the more we can develop a sustainable transportation future," said Lew Hay, FPL Group chairman and CEO. "The Clinton Global Initiative continues to serve as a catalyst for bold commitments to address serious challenges such as energy security and climate change. This commitment will help lead the way to carbon reductions in the second largest source of emissions in the U.S. economy."

The initiative will begin Jan. 1, 2010, when both companies will begin tracking their commitment. While passenger vehicles and smaller trucks are already planned, Duke Energy and FPL Group will work closely with manufacturers to test and measure the effectiveness of prototype bucket trucks in 2011 and 2012. The remainder of the commitment period will be spent transitioning vehicles, educating the public, soliciting additional partners, and providing periodic progress updates. The project is scheduled for completion Dec. 31, 2020.

"A 10-year commitment gives us time to adopt, test and integrate new technology into fleets as a wider range of vehicles are developed," said Jim Rogers, chairman, president and CEO of Duke Energy. "Currently, the only near-term options for available PEV supply are sedans, minivans, vans and a few bucket trucks. Over a 10-year horizon, it is expected that options will be available for most utility service categories."

The FPL Group/Duke Energy initiative was developed following the March 2009 Clinton Global Initiative Planning Retreat, a forum for building industry leadership.

Visit the companies' Web sites at www.FPLGroup.com and www.duke-energy.com for more information.