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Australia’s GB Auto secures huge deal to convert Hilux utes and Land Cruisers to electric

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The Driven

Australian mining vehicle company GB Auto has secured final approval for the proposed $US250 million ($A322 million) deal to convert Toyota Hilux and Land Cruisers to electric drivetrains.

Flagged in late December by Dutch firm Tembo 4×4, which creates electric conversion kits for Toyota utes, the official signing of the deal with parent company Vivopower saw the NASDAQ-listed company’s share price jump 31% on Monday (US time) to a high of $US18.22 ($A23.51).

GB Auto first caught The Driven’s attention in May 2019, when it shared a photo on social media of its first battery-electric Land Cruiser it was testing for the mining industry – just days after the federal election campaign which saw prime minister Scott Morrison and ministers Angus Taylor and Michaelia Cash mount a destructive disinformation campaign aginst electric vehicles.

Morrison claimed before the election – without any evidence – that electric vehicles would “ruin the weekend”, Cash made out that electric utes are of no use to tradespeople, and Taylor trashed Labor’s proposed 50% EV target accusing it of being tantamount to a new tax.

But GB Auto’s photo went viral, reaching more than 340,000 users within a week of sharing.

To read the full version of this story, please go to our EV-focussed sister site, The Driven and click here…

Bridie Schmidt is lead reporter for The Driven, sister site of Renew Economy. She specialises in writing about new technology, and has a keen interest in the role that zero emissions transport has to play in sustainability.

Bridie Schmidt

Bridie Schmidt is lead reporter for The Driven, sister site of Renew Economy. She specialises in writing about new technology, and has a keen interest in the role that zero emissions transport has to play in sustainability.

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