"We Are Running Out Of Time". Project Better Place

As I promised in my earlier post, I am posting the speech by Shai Agassi's at today's announcement by the government of Israel and Renault-Nissan on their collaboration along the Better Place framework - creating the first three way partnership for an oil-independent country. The original speech was in Hebrew and the following is the first few lines of the translated version of the speech. I would have posted the the speech in it's entirety but then I want even the little traffic I get, to visit the Project Better Place. We all will benefit from the work they are doing and as Shai said, the time is running out! So please follow the link below for the complete speech and the rest of the Project Better Place.

Mr. Prime Minister; Mr. Ghosn; honorable guests. It is an honor to be here with you today.

It is not typical and a rather humbling moment for a founder of a small startup to share a stage with the prime minister of his own country - Ehud Olmert, and one of the legendary CEOs of our times – Carlos Ghosn.

It is not a typical for a government take a bold strategic decision and challenge the private sector to help it solve a problem of global magnitude as the prime minister and its President of Israel did.

But these are not typical times.

These are times where we are running out of oil in the ground and we are running out of air, The oil we burn harms the atmosphere that controls the climate of our the planet. We have reached times where in some parts of our world children cannot see the sky.

Finally, we are running out of our most precious commodity of all – we are running out of time.

Project Better Place

tag: Project Better Place, , Renault-Nissan, electric vehicles, zero-emission, Israel

Project Better Place, and the Renault-Nissan Alliance engage in a breakthrough Project for electric vehicles in Israel

Project better place, Shai Agassi's initiative to revolutionize transport by building an entire electrically powered system for cars, starting with solar energy, non-polluting electric vehicles and infrastructure to charge the cars - all without dependence on oil, in Israel, is making very good progress. Here is the latest news release from the site. I will also be posting a speech by Shai Agassi later.
Project Better Place, and the Renault-Nissan Alliance engage in a breakthrough Project for electric vehicles in Israel

JERUSALEM--(BUSINESS WIRE)--In a significant move towards reducing CO₂ car emissions as well as particles pollution, the Renault-Nissan Alliance and Project Better Place engage in a breakthrough with electric vehicles in Israel. The solution framework comes in response to the Israeli State’s challenge to the auto industry and its supply chain to migrate the country’s transportation infrastructure to renewable sources of energy.

For the first time in history, all the conditions necessary for electric vehicles to be successfully mass-marketed will be brought together in a partnership between the Renault-Nissan Alliance and Project Better Place in Israel. The Israeli government would provide tax incentives to customers, Renault would supply the electric vehicles, and Project Better Place would construct and operate an Electric Recharge Grid across the entire country. Electric vehicles will be available for customers in 2011.

• 100% electric vehicles: Renault’s vehicles will run on pure electricity for all functions. The objective of zero emissions will be achieved, while at the same time offering driving performances similar to a 1.6 liter gasoline engine. Renault’s electric vehicles will be equipped with lithium-ion batteries, ensuring greater driving range and longevity.
• Innovative business model: For the first time in the electric vehicle business, ownership of the car is separated from the requirement to own a battery. Consumers will buy and own their car and subscribe to energy, including the use of the battery, on a basis of kilometers driven. This model is similar to the way mobile phones are sold, with an initial purchase and a monthly subscription for the mobility service.
• Competitive cost of ownership: The Israeli government recently extended a tax incentive on the purchase of any zero-emissions vehicle until 2019, making them more affordable. Combined with the lower cost of electricity as opposed to fuel-based energy, and the vehicle’s lifetime guarantee, the total cost of ownership for the customer will be significantly lower than that of a fuel-based car over the life cycle of the vehicle.
• Electric Recharge Grid infrastructure: California-based Project Better Place plans to deploy a massive network of battery charging spots. Driving range will no longer be an obstacle, because customers will be able to plug their cars into charging units in any of the 500,000 charging spots in Israel. An on-board computer system will indicate to the driver the remaining power supply and the nearest charging spot. Nissan, through its joint venture with NEC, has created a battery pack that meets the requirements of the electric vehicle and will mass-produce it. Renault is working on development of exchangeable batteries for continuous mobility. The entire framework will go through a series of tests starting this year.
• Perfect first mass market: In Israel, where 90% of car owners drive less than 70 kilometers per day, and all major urban centers are less than 150 kilometers apart, electric vehicles would be the ideal means of transportation and could therefore cover most of the population’s transportation needs.

Along with Project Better Place, this is the first illustration of the Alliance’s commitment to mass-market zero-emission vehicles all over the world.

Project Better Place

Project Better Place is a venture-backed company that aims to reduce global dependency on oil through the creation of a market-based transportation infrastructure that supports electric vehicles, providing consumers with a cleaner, sustainable, personal transportation alternative. Launched in October 2007, Project Better Place will build its first pilot Electric Recharge Grid in Israel and plans to deploy the infrastructure on a country-by-country basis with initial deployments beginning in 2010.

tag: Project Better Place, zero-emission, Electric Recharge Grid, electric vehicles, Renault-Nissan,