Alternate Route

Jan 22, 2008 - Perfect Storm?

Renault SA, France's second-largest carmaker, and affiliate Nissan Motor Co. said they will develop an electric car network in Israel in a venture with entrepreneur Shai Agassi's Project Better Place. The vehicles would be available starting in 2011.

Better Place will construct 500,000 recharging points in Israel, the companies said. Car buyers will subscribe to energy, including use of the battery, on the basis of kilometers driven.

``For first time, all the conditions necessary for electric vehicles to be successfully mass-marketed will be brought together in a partnership between Renault, Nissan and Project Better Place,'' the three companies said.

While this will certainly get electric vehicle enthusiasts all charged up (you didn't think I could let that one slip by did you?), consider that Israel is approximately the same size as New Jersey and they're talking about a half million charging points.

Even if they've overcome the limitations of battery technology - which they haven't - this ought to give some sense of the kind of effort and expenditure it would require for electric vehicles to become more than a curiosity on the roads.

And whatever happened to 5-year plans? Last year GM says they'll have the Volt ready for 2010, and now Renault aims at 2011. Once again, three years seems like an overly ambitious target.

Read the entire story at Bloomberg.com

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5:51 am | Categories: chevy volt, electric vehicles, nissan, renault Permalink | Alert Administrator

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