Emerald Automotive, the low emission van company that recently made the City of Hazelwood its US headquarters has unveiled a first look at its hybrid delivery vehicle fleet: the demonstrator t-001, which has a range of more than 450 miles with no compromise on performance and payload.

The company released the first photographs of its demonstrator vehicles, currently being tested at Millbrook Proving Ground in the United Kingdom on Monday.

“I am delighted to see the vehicles in action, being put through their paces as part of the van development program,” said Emerald Automotive CEO Andy Tempest. “Full credit must be given to our engineering team and technical partners who have worked tirelessly over the past 18 months to meet all our demanding cost, design and milestone targets.

Tempest said the van development is a considerable achievement, given that the t-001 was designed from the ground up. The vehicles are specifically designed for global fleet customers, and according to the company website will reduce emissions by 80 percent and reduce lifetime costs for fleet operators.

"This is a very proud moment and another significant achievement in our company’s development,” he said.

Emerald Automotive will bring to market an all new, light weight, low emission delivery vehicle planned for global distribution in 2014, but the company needs financing from the Department of Energy to build its Hazelwood plant.