The tropical island of Hawaii has become the latest US state to commit to the Project Better Place programme – a radically different approach to introducing electric vehicles into key markets.
Under the Better Place initiative, electric cars will cost relatively little and drivers will pay primarily for access to a network of charging stations and battery exchange sites. Using a car developed by Nissan and Renault, Better Place aims to establish full integration with the grid to charge during low-use hours. It will also helps smooth out interruptions in renewable power as it releases power back from the batteries both in the vehicles themselves and at the charging stations.
Clearly, this is no ordinary example of an electric car manufacturer attempting to claw its way into a market. Instead it involves a great deal of co-ordination including installing the charging stations in public parking areas and integrating battery exchange locations with the grid.
Better Place has already made an impact in Denmark and Israel as well as establishing a coalition across the Bay Area of San Francisco, California. It has also received backing in Australia.
It’s an interesting initiative that may be one step ahead of the likes of General Motors with its Volt programme, in that GM will rely on drivers to charge the cars and additional infrastructure will in effect be someone else’s problem.
