For the Tribune

By GWEN BRISTOLBy GWEN BRISTOL

From the outside, Basin Electric Cooperative's plug-in hybrid vehicle looks about like any other Ford Escape. A short cord extending from the rear bumper and the PLUG-1-IN license plate are the only indicators that this car is something special.

Chris VandeVenter, legislative representative for Basin Electric, said the vehicle was converted from a conventional hybrid to a plug-in hybrid with a rechargeable battery at the end of October.

It was one of about half a dozen conversion projects developed by the Cooperative Research Network of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association. The CRN wanted to study plug-in hybrids in different locations nationwide and arranged for $15,000 of the $30,000 total cost for Basin Electric's conversion. The state commerce department provided a grant to cover the remaining $15,000.

"The intent is to do demonstration projects," said Ron Rebenitsch, manager of alternative technologies at Basin Electric and chairman of the renewable energy committee with CRN.

"One of the advantages of a plug-in hybrid is you can usually get 30-40 miles on the battery alone," Rebenitsch said. "Most commutes are short and use all electricity, but you still have a vehicle you can drive around the country."

A plug-in hybrid is different from a conventional hybrid, VandeVenter said, because it has a wider range for driving on electrical power. A plug-in hybrid also can be plugged into any electrical outlet and recharged when it's not in use, while a conventional hybrid has to be running in order to recharge itself.

The conversion's gasoline engine kicks in at about 35-40 mph or when the battery's charge is depleted.

"It performs very well," VandeVenter said. "The first three or four days after we converted it, we noticed a huge difference. It stayed in electric mode a lot longer than it did before the conversion."

The vehicle got around 28 miles per gallon as a conventional hybrid. As a plug-in, it gets 35-40 miles per gallon with the possibility of getting up to 60 miles per gallon.

"We're just at the early stages of figuring this all out," VandeVenter said.

Commercial hybrid vehicles have been around for the past decade, but the rechargeable plug-in hybrid is a relative newcomer. VandeVenter said during the past year or two, a number of people across the nation have been building their own plug-in conversions.

"Really, it was just duct tape and old bike batteries, just really prototype stuff," he said. "As we researched, we realized there weren't any out there. No car manufacturer makes plug-in hybrids commercially."

Basin Electric employees first started thinking about adding a plug-in hybrid to the company fleet in early 2006 and approached company administrators with the idea that fall.

The company bought two conventional hybrid Ford Escapes in May 2007 with the intent of converting one to a plug-in. In June, Basin Electric signed a contract with A123 Systems/High Motion, one of three companies VandeVenter knows that make and sell plug-in lithium ion battery packs for hybrid cars.

The 8-kilowatt-hour battery pack was ceremoniously dropped into the back of the vehicle during the Great Plains Energy Exposition on Oct. 29. It takes up 15 inches of space behind the back seat.

By the first week in December, Basin Electric's conversion already had around 900 miles on it.

"We're trying to get as much visibility out of it as possible," VandeVenter said.

Driving the vehicle often gives the company plenty of chances to gather and log data. Besides the CRN study, Basin Electric will be participating in Idaho National Labs' study. The complimentary study will look at 40-50 plug-in hybrids, including seven plug-in hybrids from electric cooperatives located in states like Georgia and North Carolina.

"They don't get as cold as we do," VandeVenter said. "Not only are we testing it in a more rural area, we're testing it in a different environment."

"We really don't know what the outcome of the study will be," he said. "What we hope the study will show is that plug-in hybrids or electric vehicles will be the next wave of transportation in the future."

VandeVenter said car manufacturers like Ford and GM are starting to consider plug-in hybrids. The three companies that make and install battery packs for government and company fleets are now planning to market to individuals, as well.

"All of the companies out there want to commercialize it," VandeVenter said. "It's just a matter of when."

"There's plenty of spare electricity on the grid to charge millions of these plug-in hybrid vehicles," he said.