ANAHEIM, CA / ACCESS Newswire / May 20, 2025 / Phoenix Motor Inc. (the "Company" or "PhoenixEV"), a leading manufacturer of medium-duty shuttle buses, trucks, and heavy-duty transit buses, announced today its first order of five (5) all-electric, zero-emission Z-400 shuttle buses from the County of Los Angeles Internal Services Department (ISD). These electric vehicles, built on the Ford E-450 chassis and powered by PhoenixEV technology, will enhance transit options for residents living in Los Angeles County Development Authority (LACDA) public housing sites, offering a more sustainable way to connect.
ISD, in collaboration with LACDA, secured a critical California Air Resources Board (CARB) Sustainable Transportation Equity Project (STEP) grant for its "Empowerment in Motion" initiative. STEP funds community-driven solutions to improve transportation equity in low-income and disadvantaged areas by enhancing mobility, increasing access to essential destinations, and reducing GHG emissions. STEP is part of California Climate Investments, a statewide initiative that puts billions of Cap-and-Trade dollars to work reducing GHG emissions, strengthening the economy, and improving public health and the environment - particularly in disadvantaged communities. Aligned with the County's commitment to a zero-emissions fleet and clean transportation, this project will deploy five (5) electric shuttles to serve LACDA public housing residents, providing zero-emission mobility options and improved access to essential services.
"By helping to provide zero-emission bus service to public-housing residents, STEP is meeting some of CARB's top priorities - to give more clean transportation options to disadvantaged communities that have fewer economic resources and face greater pollution," said CARB Chair Liane Randolph.
"As a leading commercial electric medium and heavy-duty vehicle provider, PhoenixEV is well-positioned to support Los Angeles County with all-electric shuttle buses, and we are excited to be expanding our presence in Los Angeles, which is our largest market for our medium duty electric shuttles and trucks," says Denton Peng, CEO of PhoenixEV.
The Phoenix Z-400 is equipped with a high-performance 90-kWh battery pack, offering a range of up to 125 miles on a single charge. The vehicles can be fully recharged in under two hours using a 100-kW Level III charger. Compared to traditional gas-powered shuttle buses, the Z-400 offers significant environmental benefits, including a reduction of approximately 61 tons of CO2 emissions annually per vehicle. Additionally, these electric buses are expected to lower maintenance costs by 75% and up to 80% decrease in fuel expenses.
"We're thrilled to support Los Angeles County in their efforts to clean the air and promote sustainable transportation," says Denton Peng. "With our headquarters in Southern California, we're especially excited to see our all-electric Z-400 shuttle buses deployed locally, helping the county meet its environmental goals and reduce its reliance on fossil fuels."
PhoenixEV continues its work in the electric vehicle sector, manufacturing, delivering clean, energy-efficient solutions for municipalities and businesses committed to reducing their environmental footprint.
"The ‘Empowerment in Motion' initiative, made possible by the generous support of the CARB STEP grant, enables advancement towards cleaner transportation options for Los Angeles County residents." stated Minh Le, General Manager of Energy and Environment Services at ISD. "This order of electric shuttles represents the initial phase in this project to provide equitable transportation services for residents that will connect them with key parts of their communities while reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
"The LACDA is thankful to be a partner on this transportation equity pilot that will benefit the needs of our public housing residents," said Emilio Salas, LACDA Executive Director. "Not only will these electric vehicles reduce our carbon footprint, but they will also increase access to key destinations and create safe and accessible transportation options for our residents, by providing an alternative to public transportation.
About Phoenix Motor Inc.
Phoenix Motor Inc., Phoenix Motor, a pioneer in the electric vehicle (EV") industry, designs, builds, and integrates electric drive systems and manufactures heavy duty transit buses and medium and light duty commercial EVs. Phoenix operates two primary brands, "Phoenix", which is focused on commercial products including heavy and medium duty EVs (transit buses, shuttle buses, school buses and delivery trucks, among others) and "EdisonFuture", which intends to offer light-duty and commercial EVs. Phoenix endeavors to be a leading designer, developer and manufacturer of electric vehicles and electric vehicle technologies. To learn more, please visit: www.phoenixev.ai.
About the Internal Services Department
The Internal Services Department (ISD) is a general services organization that supports the County of Los Angeles by providing a range of support services to other County departments in the areas of purchasing, contracting, facilities, information technology, and other support services, such as energy and environmental programs management, parking, and mail services. The County Board of Supervisors has designated ISD as the lead department for residential broadband service initiatives. ISD also administers Delete The Divide, an initiative to advance digital equity in underserved communities through partnerships, infrastructure investments, and technology resources that empower residents and small businesses. For more information, visit isd.lacounty.gov
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements, as that term is defined in the Private Litigation Reform Act of 1995, that involve significant risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements can be identified through the use of words such as "may," "might," "will," "intend," "should," "could," "can," "would," "continue," "expect," "believe," "anticipate," "estimate," "predict," "outlook," "potential," "plan," "seek," and similar expressions and variations or the negatives of these terms or other comparable terminology. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which reflect the Company's current expectations and speak only as of the date of this release. Actual results may differ materially from the Company's current expectations depending upon a number of factors. These risk factors include, among others, those related to our ability to raise additional capital necessary to grow our business, operations and business and financial performance, our ability to grow demand for our products and revenue, our ability to become profitable, our ability to have access to an adequate supply of parts and materials and other critical components for our vehicles on the timeline we expect, the coronavirus (COVID-19) and the effects of the outbreak and actions taken in connection therewith, adverse changes in general economic and market conditions, competitive factors including but not limited to pricing pressures and new product introductions, uncertainty of customer acceptance of new product offerings and market changes, risks associated with managing the growth of the business, and those other risks and uncertainties that are described in the "Risk Factors" section of the Company's annual report filed on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Except as required by law, the Company does not undertake any responsibility to revise or update any forward-looking statements.
Contact
marketing@phoenixev.ai
Dave Gentry, CEO
RedChip Companies, Inc.
1-407-644-4256
PEV@redchip.com
SOURCE: Phoenix Motor Inc.
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