Five of Subaru's new Stella electric vehicle concepts will be used to transport government officials around the G8 Summit meeting in Tokyo next week (7-9 July).

The Plug-in Stella uses the same electric power system as Subaru's R1e that is already on the road in Japan.

However, the Stella is designed to be a more practical car and is styled as a mini-MPV.

The Stella has a top speed of 100 km/h and can drive up to 80 kilometres on a single charge.

A 40-kilowatt electric motor generates 110lb.ft of pulling power, which is the same as the average 1.6-litre engine in a supermini.

Subaru says it is committed to building more electric cars and sees them as a viable environmentally friendly solution alongside more traditional internal combustion engines.