Better Place has long touted its idea of offering viable battery swapping stations, but until now, it hasn’t actually demonstrated the system in the real world. The battery developer just opened its first swap station in Tokyo, where it will service three of Tokyo’s electric taxis.
Regardless of if they’re gasoline or electric powered, to remain available for commercial service, they need to take on energy — and quickly. Better Place says that if batteries were repeatedly charged rapidly (i.e. 5-minute charge cycles), they wouldn’t last very long. 30-minute charge cycles would be healthier, but aren’t all that practical for drivers, who make their money by being out and about on the streets.
Better Place’s system, which provides drivers with pre-charged battery packs that can be quickly swapped into an EV, is plenty sensible for this application. According to the company, swapping a depleted lithium-ion battery for a charged one can be accomplished in approximately one minute — making it quicker than a typical gasoline fill-up.
At this point, the station is merely a test of the company’s equipment and processes, and is relegated to servicing three electric taxis based off the Nissan Dualis (a crossover similar to the Rogue). The taxis were custom built to work with Better Place’s battery swap system by Nissan, which has long been a partner with the battery start-up firm.
“The final stations will be able to accommodate multiple types of batteries and will have greater storage capacity,” Kiyotaka Fujii, president of Better Place’s Japanese operations, told the New York Times.
The Tokyo test will last 90 days, and if successful, will allow Better Place to opening its first production swap station in Israel later this year. A full commercial launch in scheduled for 2011.
Trojan Battery Company, the world’s leading manufacturer of deep cycle batteries, announced that it has extended its contract with E-Z-GO as its exclusive supplier of deep cycle batteries for all new electric fleet golf cars made by E-Z-GO, including the Industry-leading RXV® and the recently introduced TXT® 48 fleet golf cars. As part of this new contract, E-Z-GO will also offer Trojan’s HydroLink(TM) single-point watering system as an option. The HydroLink watering system will be available as an aftermarket accessory as well as factory-installed on Trojan batteries in select golf cars, like the RXV and TXT 48.
“Trojan is pleased with the extended opportunity to further strengthen our partnership with E-Z-GO,” said David Godber, executive vice president of sales and marketing for Trojan Battery Company. “E-Z-GO’s decision to use Trojan Battery in all of their fleet golf cars is an undeniable testimony to the quality products and services we provide.”
“Extending our partnership was an easy decision stemming from the outstanding collaboration that existed between our two companies,” said Kevin Holleran, president of E-Z-GO. “Trojan’s innovative battery technology has enabled E-Z-GO to integrate vital technological advancements such as the TruCourse Technology featured in our TXT 48. In addition, we rely on Trojan for its exceptional field support, which has resulted in improved efficiency and a higher level of customer service provided by E-Z-GO dealers and service locations nationwide.”
E-Z-GO’s new TXT 48 is an update of the proven TXT electric golf car platform with a 48-volt DC drivetrain and E-Z-GO’s exclusive TruCourse Technology system, offering more customization settings than any other fleet golf car on the market. The combination of the 48-volt DC drivetrain and TruCourse Technology also makes the TXT 48 10 percent more energy efficient than the previous 36-model, and its improved regenerative braking system provides up to 10 percent more power back into the batteries under normal operating conditions – lowering operating costs for the golf course operator.
As of mid-April, the TXT 48 and other new electric vehicles from E-Z-GO will also feature Trojan’s new T2 Technology, a series of refinements integrated for enhanced performance in Trojan’s most popular deep cycle golf batteries. Engineered to address the increasing performance demands of advancing OEM requirements, T2 Technology builds upon Trojan’s historically proven technology and incorporates improvements in electrochemical processing and battery design to achieve maximum sustained performance and deliver more total energy. Improvements include enhancements in Trojan’s Alpha Plus® Paste and the Maxguard® separator design. The T2 Technology will be available to the general public in Trojan’s flooded, deep cycle batteries starting in June.
Volkswagen AG said it’s in talks with a Robert Bosch GmbH and Samsung SDI Co. venture and LG Chem Ltd. as Europe’s biggest carmaker is broadening the search for suppliers of electric-car batteries.
“We want to keep our options open and see how the different battery systems are developing,” Ulrich Hackenberg, head of Volkswagen brand development, said in an interview. He declined to specify when an accord with SB LiMotive Co. and LG Chem, the biggest South Korean chemical maker, will be signed.
“Mass produced battery cells won’t be deliverable until about one or two years from now,” Hackenberg said.
Volkswagen is cooperating with “several” manufacturers of rechargeable batteries including BYD Co., the Chinese carmaker backed by billionaire Warren Buffett; Japan-based Sanyo Electric Co.; and Toshiba Corp., Hackenberg said, noting the Japanese suppliers “are still a step ahead” of BYD.
Volkswagen, based in Wolfsburg, Germany, wants to start building battery-powered cars in China as soon as 2013 and said yesterday it will spend another 1.6 billion euros ($2.1 billion) on models and two new facilities in China, increasing total investments in the world’s biggest auto market to 6 billion euros.
The carmaker may extend its cooperation on battery development with BYD “in the foreseeable future,” Hackenberg said, adding that the companies are having “intense exchanges” based on VW’s testing of BYD battery prototypes.
Daimler AG’s cooperation with Shenzhen-based BYD poses “no danger” to Volkswagen’s leading position in China, Hackenberg said. The world’s second-biggest maker of luxury vehicles said last month it will develop an electric car with BYD for Chinese customers and aims to launch the model by 2013.
South Korean chemical manufacturer LG Chem has been selected to supply Volvo’s lithium-ion battery pack according to press reports.
Media in South Korea say LG Chem will supply a total pack for Volvo’s electric hybrid car, comprising battery management systems (BMS) as well as the battery cells.
The reports add LG Chem previously signed deals to provide secondary batteries to the Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group (HKAG), General Motors and Chinese manufacturer Chang’an Automobile Group.
“LG Chem has entered into supply contracts with six companies so far, namely HKAG, CT&T, Chang’an Automobile Group, Eaton Corp, General Motors and Volvo,” LG Chem vice chairman and CEO Peter Bahnsuk Kim is quoted as saying.
Kim is cited as noting LG Chem expects a further four announcements by year-end. “In such case, LG Chem will be able to secure more than ten global supply lines within this year,” he said.
California-based Better Place said it signed a memorandum of understanding with Chery, China’s largest independent car maker and exporter, to collaborate on electric vehicle technology.
Under the agreement, the two companies will jointly develop switchable-battery electric vehicle prototypes in the hopes of securing regional Chinese government pilot projects, Better Place said.
Better Place is aiming to build a network of charging stations for electric cars, leasing batteries to customers for use in their vehicles. Better Place is already building networks in Israel, Denmark, and Australia.
The well-funded start-up raised $350 million in January from a consortium led by HSBC and Morgan Stanley Investment Management. The funding valued the company at $1.25 billion.
China overtook the United States as the world’s biggest auto market last year. Chery sold around 500,000 vehicles in 2009.
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