Under the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) related Diesel Emission Reduction Act (DERA), funding is available through ARRA for up to 25% of the cost of a new hybrid truck. Fleets are able to purchase multiple trucks. An existing diesel truck has to be taken out of service for each new hybrid truck that is purchased.

Dontia Warren, market development manager for Eaton’s Hybrid Power business unit, indicated that by combining the DERA funding with an IRS tax credit and the fuel and operating savings of a hybrid versus a conventional diesel truck, the cost of a new diesel hybrid truck could be about the same as a conventional new truck over a five-year period.

There is a sense of urgency to our effort, since the submission period for EPA regional applications begins March 17 and ends April 27. Our goal is to identify all of our customers who qualify and want to take advantage of this opportunity by no later than April 1.

—Dontia Warren

The DERA grants are made to non-profit organizations that have jurisdiction over air quality for projects that reduce diesel emissions. The non-profit organizations submit the applications to the appropriate EPA regional office.

The Eaton hybrid system is available on truck models from International, Peterbilt, Kenworth and Freightliner. Commercial vehicle fleets with Eaton hybrid systems have accumulated more than 12 million miles in revenue service to date.

Benefits of the Eaton hybrid system include fuel savings ranging from 30 to 60% with similar percentages in emission reductions, extended brake life and reductions of up to 87 percent in idle times during work site operations.

Fleets and equipment eligible for the DERA funding include buses, medium or heavy duty trucks, marine engines and locomotives. Also included are vehicles with non-road or stationary engines used for construction, handling of cargo (at ports or airports), mining and energy production.

More information about the EPA's DERA program is available at www.epa.gov/cleandiesel. To request additional information about Eaton’s program send inquiries to [email protected].