Leading Vietnamese Scooter Manufacturer Selects KMA's High-Performance Electric Motor

AUSTIN, Texas January 23, 2009: The leading Vietnamese-based scooter manufacturer, Sufat Co. Ltd., is developing a new line of scooters designed to integrate Austin-based KLD Motors America, Inc.’s (KMA) electric motor system. The deal represents the first large-scale agreement for KMA to produce its patented, high-frequency, low RPM, transmissionless motor system.

“We’re very excited that Sufat has chosen our motor system for integration into its next-generation of scooters. Our motor system enables Sufat to create an electric scooter that is extremely responsive, flexible and fast,” said Christian Okonsky, founder and CEO of KLD Energy Technologies and KMA. “The new scooter will easily maintain and reach speeds comparable to gas-powered vehicles — significantly outperforming traditional electric scooters.”

Production of Sufat’s new scooters will begin during the fourth quarter at the company’s Hanoi, Vietnam facility. The company hopes to be manufacturing 50,000 scooters featuring the new electric motor in the first year of production. The new model will be available through-out Vietnam beginning in early 2010.

“We’re very excited to be leveraging this new technology to create more advanced scooters,” said Dinh An, vice general director, Sufat. “We see high-demand for the new scooters in the Vietnamese market where two-wheeled vehicles are a dominant form of transportation.”

According to Vietnamese government figures, Vietnam has over 22 million scooters on the road.

With KLD Energy Technologies’ new motor system, Sufat’s electric scooters will offer drivers unparalleled performance. The scooters will easily achieve speeds of 50 to 55 miles per hour, double those of traditional, electric motor scooters, and reach 0 to 50 miles per hour in less than ten seconds. As a transmissionless system, the two-wheeled vehicles will also have a reduced cost of ownership.

“Our motor system is able to perform at a higher level because we’ve fundamentally taken a new approach to its design,” said Okonsky.

KLD Energy Technologies’ motor system uses an innovative nano-crystalline composite material to conduct energy more efficiently than traditional, iron-core motors. The high-frequency to low RPM ratio eliminates the need for a transmission. The system’s computerized motor controller is designed specifically for the higher-frequency output of the motor. The result is a highly responsive system enabling two- and three-wheeled electric vehicles to attain speeds and performance levels on-par with gas-powered vehicles.