The Renault-Nissan Alliance has signed an agreement with Orange, one of the world’s largest telecommunications operators, to supply it with a fleet of 200 electric vehicles for its needs in France.
Renault-Nissan will provide the 100% electric vehicles to Orange by 2015. Orange will use the electric vehicles mostly for car-sharing purposes between its buildings and installations in France.
Orange currently has about 2,000 pool vehicles in France with about 100 cars (hybrid, electric, diesel, etc.) available for car-sharing purposes. Using the Orange Auto Partage application, employees can book a car for professional or personal use online or via a smartphone.
The Renault-Nissan electric fleet will comprise the Renault ZOE subcompact, the Renault Kangoo Z.E. van, the newly launched Nissan e-NV200 van and the Nissan LEAF, the world’s best-selling electric vehicle ever. Orange already owns a fleet of about thirty tandem 2-seat Twizys it has acquired from Renault since 2012.
Renault-Nissan will accompany Orange in the installation of a network of charging stations at the sites which adopt the car-sharing service.
The electric vehicles procurement agreement between the Alliance and Orange is part of a wider international partnership between the two companies.
The Renault-Nissan Alliance is the world’s leader in electric mobility with the widest range of 100% electric vehicles. To date, the Alliance has sold 176,000 electric vehicles globally, more than all other major automakers combined.
Renault and Nissan have signed several major EV fleet deals around the world. In 2011, La Poste in France placed a bid for more than 10,000 Renault Kangoo Z.E.s. More recently, AVIS car rental in Denmark ordered 400 Nissan LEAFs, the biggest single order for the electric vehicle so far. The Nissan LEAF is also part of taxi programs in several big cities around the world, including Amsterdam, Madrid, Tokyo, Mexico City, Sao Paulo and Zurich.
