Eletra, Developer of Hybrid Bus Technology Honored At The World Technology Awards

SAO PAOLO, Brazil, June 26 -- Eletra, the Brazilian company that developed hybrid bus technology, which generates onboard energy by combining a diesel engine, electric generator and battery bank, was awarded second place in the energy category at the World Technology Awards in San Francisco, California on June 25. Eletra was the only Brazilian company to win an award.

The electric hybrid traction system allows for a reduction of up to 90% in the emission of pollutants and a reduction of 20 to 30% on fuel consumption, according to measurements by COOPE of the Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (Federal University of Rio de Janeiro). This technology is now being used by 13 busses operating in Brazil and has also been exported to Chile and New Zealand. Eletra is currently negotiating with Panama over the purchase of more than 300 hybrid busses. The technology is also being examined for export to Venezuela, Taiwan, Israel, India and the U.S.

The World Technology Awards, hosted by the World Technology Network and supported by U.S. technology and communications industry heavy-weights, such as sponsors Nasdaq, Time, Accenture and Microsoft, are considered the "Oscars of the technology world," according to Maria Beatriz Setti Braga, Director of Eletra. "We are very proud of having been awarded second place. This award represents global acknowledgement of Brazilian technology by the international scientific community," she said, noting that, "Eletra was among 15 international companies, including DaimlerChrysler, H2Gen and USCAR, competing in this category."

The benefits and innovation of the urban electric traction bus with Eletra's hybrid technology had already been recognized in Brazil and abroad, referred to as "the most successful hybrid busses in the world" by C.M. Jefferson and R.H.Barnard of the University of the West of England, in their book, Hybrid Vehicle Propulsion, published in 2002.

In 2000, the "Eletra Hybrid System" received honorable mention at the Mercocities Science & Technology Awards, which each year considers technology initiatives from any industry responsible for the solution of a relevant problem in any of the cities of the Mercocities Network, which is comprised of 63 municipalities in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay.