Gas Turbine Electric Vehicle Project Kicks Off

Under the somewhat blunt title hides not one, but two automotive premieres: the first commercially viable gas turbine generator to be used in the automotive field and the first electric vehicle to get one. The crazy project is the brainchild of a consortium led by micro gas turbine company Bladon Jets and supported by Jaguar Land Rover and electrical machine company SR Drives.

Its goal, as said is to build the first commercially viable gas turbine generator to be used in the automotive field.

The project -officially dubbed Ultra Lightweight Range Extender (ULRE)- is no longer on paper, as Bladon Jets managed to secure a £15 million funding from the Technology Strategy Board.

ULRE will use a Bladon Jets axial flow gas turbine engine coupled to a high speed generator using SR Drives’ switched reluctance technology.

The overall design of the ULRE will be handled by Jaguar Land Rover. JLR already has some experience in this field, after playing with gas turbines back in the 1960s, when they developed the Rover turbine.

“Winning this Technology Strategy Board award is a really significant event for Bladon Jets and for the future of low carbon vehicle development in the UK. We are delighted to be working with our partners Jaguar Land Rover and SR Drives on this project and look forward to seeing our micro gas turbine engine play a major role in the renaissance of the British automotive industry,” Paul Barrett, Bladon Jets chairman said in a release announcing the funding.