Project Better Place

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Project Better Place is a name for an innovative company focused on building massive scale Electric Recharge Grids as infrastructure supporting the deployment of electric vehicles (including plug-in hybrids) in countries around the world.

When a driver travels long-distance, he can swap batteries at an exchange station to get a fully charged battery, similar to how he now stops to fill his gas tank today.

The company was publicly launched by Shai Agassi on October 29th, 2007. It has already raised $200 million.^[1]

In April 2008, Deutsche Bank analysts reportedly concluded that the company's approach could be a "paradigm shift" that causes "massive disruption" to the auto industry, and which has "the potential to eliminate the gasoline engine altogether."^[2]

1 Investors
2 Similar projects
3 Launch
4 See also
5 References
6 External links

[edit] Investors

It has raised funding from various sources: VantagePoint Venture Partners, Israel Corporation, Israel Cleantech Ventures, Morgan Stanley, and private investors led by Michael Granoff of Maniv Energy Capital.^[3]

[edit] Similar projects

In France, Électricité de France (EDF) and Toyota are installing recharging points for PHEVs on roads, streets and parking lots.^[4] EDF is also partnering with Elektromotive, Ltd.^[5] to install 250 new charging points over six months from October 2007 in London and elsewhere in the UK.^[6] Recharging points also can be installed for specific uses, as in taxi stands.

[edit] Launch

In early 2008, the Tel Aviv Municipality announced a pilot scheme in which charging points for electric cars will be built and set up across the city. Initially, five charging points will be built and eventually 150 points will be located across the city. Furthermore, battery replacement points will be located at the city's entrances under the project.^[7]

In January 2008, the Israeli government has announced its support for a broad effort to promote the use of electric cars, embracing a joint venture between the Project Better Place, Renault and its partner, Nissan Motor Company. Renault and Project Better Place are working on development of exchangeable batteries.^[8]^[9]

In May 2008, the company presented a prototype of its electric car at a press conference in Tel Aviv. Shai Agassi estimated that the company's partner, the Renault-Nissan alliance, would likely invest $500 million to $1 billion in developing the swappable-battery electric cars.^[10]