Traffic goes electric green

Wind-powered recharge grid on the horizon for Danish battery vehicles

It’s looking good for electric cars in Denmark – as a new scheme promises a network of renewably-powered recharging stations by 2011.

Renault-Nissan’s involvement gives big name credibility to the project, with Danish power supplier Dong Energy also lined up to supply wind-generated electricity to 20,000 dedicated service points across the nation. Even with coal-generated electricity in the mix on windless days, overall CO2 emissions should still be only around half as bad as conventional petrol cars.

The driving force behind the scheme is Project Better Place (PBP). Founded by entrepreneur Shai Agassi, this Silicon Valley company works by building partnerships to set up Electric Recharge Grid (ERG) systems – which can include everything from the cars themselves to charging points, battery exchange stations and renewable energy supplies. Agassi’s approach doesn’t depend on scientific advances or new discoveries. Instead it simply integrates existing components and, by bringing together manufacturers and suppliers, enables electric car users to make longer journeys in better performing vehicles.

Earlier this year, the company announced it had teamed up with Renault-Nissan to roll out a big ERG project in Israel by 2010, supported by tax incentives from the Israeli government in line with its bid for a drastic reduction in oil dependency. A key feature of the Israeli scheme is that car owners won’t buy their batteries outright, but pay a combination of a monthly rental and a per-kilometer rate. Expansion to other European countries is planned in the near future. PBP estimates that “by 2020, fuelling a combustion car for a single year will cost more than charging an electric car for its entire life”. - Andrew Williams 

15 April 2008

Andrew Williams