BrightDrop, Enel X, EVgo & Others Drive EV Industry with New Reveals and Development
Merchants Fleet hosted the 2021 Fleet Summit at the company’s New Hampshire headquarters, where notable participants including EV newcomers like BrightDrop, a new business of General Motors, Enel X, EVgo, Ford, Stellantis, and more, along with fleet managers, fleet industry experts, other EV industry leaders, business influencers and guests had the opportunity to immerse themselves in discussions and test drives featuring the industry’s most talked about electric vehicle technologies.
The event kicked-off with opening remarks that address the company’s continued commitment to leading the fleet management industry with the most efficient and innovative technologies and solutions, and accelerating the EV market with an ever-evolving ecosystem of best-in-class partners. As a gift to Fleet Summit attendees, Merchants announced its commitment to make a donation that will offset each guests’ carbon footprint – making them carbon neutral for 1 year.
“In the months and weeks leading up to this year’s Fleet Summit, it has been abundantly clear that the fleet and transportation industries are at a sustainability tipping point, which made this gathering of the nation’s leading OEMs, charging infrastructures, upfit partners and industry disruptors imperative,” said Brendan P. Keegan, CEO of Merchants Fleet. “Now more than ever, ESG goals and values sit at the epicenter of today’s leading businesses and, with every Merchants & sponsor presentation shared over the course of two days, Merchants Fleet reaffirmed our ability to lead our clients into the new world of automotive, providing sustainable practices at every step of the fleet planning process.”
This year’s Fleet Summit also included additional programming segments to highlight the evolution of the EV market:
- Partner Education Sessions
Lead by some of the industry’s leading voices, guests participated in breakout education sessions on a range of topics, like Ford’s Electrification Initiatives & Product Portfolio, GM’s plans to invest in an all-electric future, Subaru’s advantage in this market; how EVgo is equipped to Power Electrified Fleets (Charging Infrastructure) and Best Practices for Corporate Fleet Electrification, with the Enel X team – to name a few.
- EV Demos & Drives
With vehicles like the BrightDrop EV600 making its debut appearance and behind the wheel access to the 2022 Porsche Taycan, 2022 Volvo XC40, 2022 Audi e-Tron and Tesla Model Y, attendees were offered an up close & personal opportunity to see what’s under the hood of today’s newest vehicles.
Last year, Merchants Fleet set a goal to achieve 50% electrification of its mobility fleet portfolio by 2025, and 50% electrification of its managed fleet portfolio by 2030. With the launch of initiatives including Electrify Fleet and AdoptEV, the company is already equipped to lead clients into the next evolution of the automotive industry with the tools and services necessary for a full transition toward EVs.
