Held on Tuesday (22 March) at the National Motorcycle Museum in Birmingham and sponsored by the BVRLA and Energy Saving Trust, the event provided fleets with the opportunity to test-drive electric vehicles as well as hear a number of presentations on the latest developments in EVs.

Visitors were able to put the Kangoo Van ZE and Fluence ZE saloon through their paces around a dedicated four-mile test drive circuit.

Darren Payne, Renault UK’s director of fleet and commercial vehicle operations, was impressed with the response from potential buyers, commenting: 'It’s very exciting for us to be able to start letting business customers get behind the wheel of our ZE range so they can see for themselves all the intrinsic benefits of driving and running electric vehicles.

'Renault will be the first manufacturer to offer a full range of electric vehicles and there’s been a massive sense of expectation. Several large organisations and local authorities have already expressed interest in the Renault ZE range, and we’ve already witnessed that many potential customers have done their homework on electric vehicles. They’re keen to learn more on every aspect of electric vehicle ownership and how they will enhance their businesses as part of busy fleets, and the feedback on the drives has been overwhelmingly positive.

'Drivers rated the performance and lack of noise very highly and were particularly impressed with the comfort, quality of finish and the fact that they both drive like conventional diesel and petrol-powered models.'

The Fluence ZE will be officially launched next spring. Its UK price and specification will be announced when reservations start to be taken in June.

The Kangoo Van ZE range will be available from the autumn and starts from £16,990 excluding VAT, with £59 monthly (excluding VAT) battery lease over four years/9,000 miles.