FedEx CEO Smith Testifies on Plan to End Oil Dependence

WASHINGTON, June 22 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Frederick W. Smith, Chairman, President and CEO of FedEx Corporation, co-Chairman of the Energy Security Leadership Council, and a member of the Electrification Coalition, testified today at a hearing of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. Smith spoke about the dangers posed by our nation's dependence on petroleum, and the plan to end that threat through the electrification of the ground transportation system. Following are excerpts from the testimony as prepared:

"Electricity represents a diverse, domestic, stable, fundamentally scalable energy supply whose fuel inputs are almost completely free of oil."

"We cannot let electric vehicles turn into another niche product. We cannot allow their use to be limited to environmentalists and technological enthusiasts. To make our nation's investment worthwhile—and, more importantly, to truly combat our oil dependence—we must put ourselves on the pathway toward millions, then tens of millions, and then hundreds of millions of electric cars and trucks.

"That is where this crucial legislation comes in."

"If this plan is successful, it would spur the production of electric vehicles, components, and infrastructure across the country. Much of the money that flows through deployment communities will end up in the towns and cities where the vehicles and charging infrastructure and their components are manufactured. When a factory reopens in a depressed area to build or support these vehicles—as we've already seen in places like Elkhart, Indiana and Livonia, Michigan—that is a real and tangible benefit for hardworking Americans."

"This effort is about building a new transportation system from the ground up in a fiscally responsible, competitive fashion. That's good for the entire nation."

"The public is demanding action. Electrification is truly bipartisan not just here in Washington but across the country. Americans often agree on challenges more than solutions, but that is not the case here. This proposal is popular, and it is popular for a reason."

The Electrification Coalition is a nonpartisan, not-for-profit organization committed to promoting policies and actions that will facilitate the deployment of electric vehicles on a mass scale in order to combat the economic, environmental, and national security vulnerabilities caused by our nation's dependence on petroleum.

SOURCE Electrification Coalition