It seems that it’s a new trend in motoring for auto manufacturers to join forces on green cars – and now you can add another partnership to the list.

BYD Company Limited and Daimler AG have signed a contract to create a 50:50 research and technology joint venture entitled Shenzhen BYD Daimler New Technology Co Ltd. The new venture will develop an electric vehicle for the Chinese market with around €72million to be invested.

The new electric vehicles are expected to capitalise on Daimler’s know-how in the market having recently launched the Smart Fortwo electric drive and with plans for two Mercedes-Benz electric cars – the B-Class F-CELL with fuel cell technology; and the battery electric A-Class E-CELL. It will also capitalise on BYD’s expertise in battery technology with Wang Chuangu, the chairman and president of BYD Company Limited, stating the partnership will be a unique and exciting initiative to bring this new electric vehicle to market as soon as possible.

Dr Dieter Zetsche, the chairman of the board of management of Daimler AG, backed these comments stating that the joint venture is well positioned to make the most of the vast potential for electric mobility in China.

The two signed the joint venture contract in Beijing with engineers, designers and other executives establishing working teams after the signing to begin work on the vehicle concept.

Tax exemptions for biofuels in Sweden are under threat after the Swedish National Audit Office began a review of the scheme with the results to be published in 2011.

Originally Sweden had made biofuels in transport and liquid biofuels exempt from energy and carbon tax in an attempt to increase the share of biofuels in transport and to encourage the introduction of these fuels.

Currently, the country consumes the most ethanol per capita in the EU and is behind only Germany and France in total consumption. Its existing tax subsidy comes to two billion kroner per year.

The review is said to assess the effectiveness of the exemption and look into whether the tax exemption is appropriate based on parliamentary climate change. It will also attempt to answer whether the government’s design and control of the exemption has been appropriate; whether it has significant side effects; and whether the government has followed up and assessed the tax exemption appropriately.

If the tax exemption is scrapped, Sweden certainly won’t be the first country to take such a step – Germany scrapped its tax break on biofuels in the country in 2006; and Norway announced plans to scrap its tax exemption for biodiesel last year.

It’s not just road transport that is having a significant effect on global warming – air traffic is also seen as a major contributor.

According to a new study by a team at the Dalton Research Institute in the UK, carbon dioxide and other gases from air traffic are expected to double or triple by 2050.

The study, published in the ACS Journal Environmental Science & Technology, outlines that aviation is not currently one of the main drivers of global warming – it currently contributes between two and three per cent of carbon dioxide emissions.

However, it is predicted that by 2100 carbon dioxide emissions from aviation could reach seven times their existing levels. To reach this conclusion they used a global model of aircraft movements and emissions to calculate fuel use and emissions to 2050 and beyond. The scenarios saw the authors examine technology trends in detail and develop plausible projections for fuel efficiency and emissions for each scenario.

It is expected that future emissions will grow between 2000 and 2050 by a factor in the range of 2.0 and 3.6 depending on the scenario with emissions of oxides of nitrogen over the same period projected to grow by between a factor of 1.2 and 2.7.

Mitsubishi Motors has signed an agreement with the Irish government and the country’s Electricity Supply Board (ESB) to further the market for electric cars in the country.

As part of plans to promote the use of electric cars, ESB also announced the start of Ireland’s first ecar trial-project this week, set to be conducted by Trinity College Dublin’s School of Engineering.

Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, Eamon Ryan, ESB and Mitsubishi announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) earlier this week.  As part of the trial, the all-electric, zero emission Mitsubishi i-MiEVs will be used throughout Ireland to support the planning and implementation of the ESB nationwide charging infrastructure. Customer behaviour and attitudes research will be undertaken by Trinity College Dublin to understand consumers react to electric cars. The parties intend to make the vehicles available to a wide range of users – both residential and pilot corporate customers – and to promote EVs in light of the recently announced enhanced Government incentives.

Ireland is set to introduce €5,000 to buyers of electric cars as part of measure to help the country reach its target for 10 per cent target of all vehicles on Irish roads to be electric by 2020.

Minister Eamon Ryan said: “Today’s Memorandum with Mitsubishi and ESB’s trial with Trinity College is another important milestone in the electrification of the Irish motoring fleet. Ireland is leading the way and with such innovation from ESB, TCD and our new partnership with Mitsubishi, our international position is further strengthened. Irish drivers and the Irish economy will only benefit.”

A “Smart Home Charging” system will also be trialled which will allow the cars maximise the amount of energy they get from renewable sources, while also facilitating the operation of the electricity system. This is a key requirement for a successful transition to carbon neutral sustainable travel and ESB have committed to installing 1,500 publicly accessible charging stations, 2,000 domestic charging points and 30 fast charging units on a nationwide basis throughout Ireland by the end of 2011.

The Irish government has already signed an agreement with the Renault-Nissan Alliance which will see Nissan supply its all-electric, five-seater LEAF hatchback to Ireland in early 2011 while Renault will launch its light commercial electric vehicle, Kangoo Z.E., later in the year.

Daimler and Toyota are considering a cooperation to develop fuel cells to use in electrically powered cars, according to the Financial Times Deutschland.

Neither firm has made any definitive statement regarding a joint development programme for the alternative fuel systems, but an unnamed source at Daimler told the financial paper; "There is strong interest in sharing development costs”.

Fuel cells are expensive to produce and have so far taken second place to battery-powered cars due to their high cost and a lack of refuelling infrastructure.

Daimler has already invested more than 1 billion euros into fuel cell technology since 1994. Both carmakers have produced fuel cell prototypes such as Daimler’s Mercedes-Benz B-Class F-Cell and Toyota’s Highlander FCHV.

Toyota has also outlined plans to put its first hydrogen fuelled vehicle on the road by 2015.

General Motors looks set to shelve plans to build an electric version of its Spark model with Indian car firm Reva after the latter sold a majority share of its company to Mahindra & Mahindra (see story).

According to the Financial Times, the US car giant could now be set to go it alone in the development of an electric version of its Chevrolet supermini.

In a statement, the Detroit firm said: “We may not continue with the Spark [electric vehicle] programme with Reva in the light of this development and will pursue our own electric vehicle programme.”

GM announced an alliance with Reva last year to provide the vehicle platform and manufacturing facilities for the new electric car, while Reva was to provide technology for the battery and electric motor. Production was due to start this year.

Reva, best known for its G-Wiz car, will now be renamed as Mahindra REVA Electric Vehicle Co Ltd. Mahindra & Mahindra specialise in manufacturing sports utility vehicles but more recently, the Indian firm has been developing electric and hybrid vehicles. Its purchase of a majority share of Reva will allow the firms to extend electric vehicle product development and manufacture. Mahindra is currently working on an electric version of its mini truck, the Maxximo.

The difference in carbon emissions resulting from the use of electric vehicles and small, low emission fossil-fuelled car ‘is negligible’, concludes one of the lead authors of a new report from The Royal Academy of Engineering.

Speaking as the academy publishes its new research paper, ‘Electric Vehicles: charged with potential, Professor Roger Kemp of Lancaster University and Chair of the Academy’s Electric Vehicles working group said: “When most electricity in Britain is still generated by burning gas and coal, the difference between an electric car and a small, low-emission petrol or diesel car is negligible. We welcome the fact that the motor manufacturers are so ready to take on the challenge of developing mass market electric vehicles. We also welcome the new Government’s commitment to mandating charging sockets for electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids, but establishing these as the technology of choice for personal transport is only one aspect of what is needed to reduce transport emissions."

According to the Academy’s research because the contribution of renewable and low-carbon generation to the UK’s energy supply is one of the lowest in Europe, the current low carbon potential of electric cars is severely compromised. If the UK is to meet its renewables targets and ensure a greener power supply to electric cars, a range of new low-carbon energy sources will be needed, including new nuclear power stations, wind farms and tidal barrages.

The report also identified three other major technical issues: the availability of high energy-density batteries at a price and with a long enough cycle life for electric vehicles to be economically viable, the practicalities of charging vehicles – particularly for users without off-street parking, the electrical distribution infrastructure to provide power to millions of charging points and the need for a national energy system and ‘smart grid’ that can recharge millions of electric vehicles using low-carbon electricity without overwhelming local distribution circuits.

There are three interrelated policy programmes that are critical to the successful introduction of electric vehicles: low-carbon energy, universal broadband provision and smart electricity grids. The report says that electric vehicles can only have a serious impact on carbon emissions if these three areas of policy are already in place.

Richard Parry-Jones, a member of the working group and former Group Vice President of the Ford Motor Company, says: "Electric vehicles could provide a major contribution to meeting the target of an 80 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. However, they will only be built in mass production numbers when there is a compelling sustainable social and business model for their use to allow manufacturers to plan for a long-term market and when the new vehicles have a real carbon efficiency benefit over the latest internal combustion engines."

There are ways to allow electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids to take over most of the present uses of petrol and diesel vehicles but these are unlikely to develop without financial incentives for early adopters, the report concludes. In the medium term, the new Government will need to indicate how it intends to replace road fuel taxation as electric vehicles gain market share, to allow manufacturers and potential users to make informed decisions.

A more likely alternative to widespread adoption of pure electric vehicles with their infrastructure requirement would be the plug-in hybrid. While hybrids have most of the environmental benefits of electric vehicles, they do not rely on such a comprehensive network of recharging points at multiple destinations. Plug-in hybrids could be adopted quickly as family cars or executive cars, leaving pure electric cars to achieve initial market penetration as second cars, doing low mileage and thus having little impact on carbon emissions.

Nearly five million electric vehicle charging points will be installed between 2010 and 2015: that’s the verdict of a new report by Pike Research.

It outlines that 4.7million charging points will be installed over the period with annual revenue in the sector to reach $1.8billion in 2015.

According to the prediction, the Asia Pacific region will be the largest market with the governments of China, Japan and Korea all having made commitments to invest in electric vehicle charging infrastructure while providing incentives towards the purchase of electric vehicles. Indeed China is expected to account for more than a third of the global market for charging equipment.

Meanwhile, in the US, charging equipment sales are expected to be dominated initially by government purchased or subsidised sales. Distribution will vary between regions with a higher percentage of the population having access to home charging in North America and residential equipment sales expected to represent more than two thirds of sales in the continent.

The analysis also suggests that the market for electric vehicle charging equipment will become more crowded by the end of 2011 with heavyweight players such as GE, Samsung, Siemens and Panasonic to make strong moves to rival the niche vendors such as Better Place, AeroVironment, ECOtality and Coulomb Technologies.

The predictions for the charging equipment sector are actually a slight downgrade from forecasts in 2009 when Pike Research suggest five million charging points would be installed over the period.

Having already announced that Portugal will be one of the first two countries in Europe to receive its all electric compact family car in December, the Nissan LEAF, the Renault-Nissan Alliance has now made another electric mobility partnership in the country.

The Alliance will team with the Portuguese consortium MOBI.E Tech after a letter of intent was signed committing the two parties to studying the promotion of electric mobility using the MOBI.E model, the charging system being deployed by the consortium.

MOBI.E will actually make charging stations available to all electric vehicles and will have stations installed across the country in venues ranging from shopping centres to hotels, airports and petrol stations. The network will have normal charging points capable or charging an electric vehicle in six-eight hours using wind energy produced during the night; while also boasting rapid charging points that can charge an electric vehicle in less than 30 minutes.

Users will only need an identification card to access the network.

The initiative follows on from Renault-Nissan’s agreement to implement a nationwide electric mobility programme in the country in 2008. This involves 1,300 charging points by 2011 and the supply of electric vehicles to the country beginning with the Nissan LEAF in December, 2010.

It’s the dawning of a new era for India’s REVA Electric Car Company with Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd to acquire a majority stake in the company and rename it as Mahindra REVA Electric Vehicle Co Ltd.

The agreement sees Mahindra & Mahindra own 55.2 per cent equity in Mahindra REVA. The board has also been reconstituted with Dr Pawan Goenka, to become the chairman. It will also include five nominees from Mahindra & Mahindra, two from the Maini family and one from AEV LLC, the co-founders of REVA. An independent director will also be added with Chetan Maini to continue to be on the board and play a leading role as chief of technology and strategy at the newly formed company.

Mahindra has had its eyes on the electric vehicle market for some time having been working for 10 years to develop green technologies and demonstrate diesel hybrid technology. It also has a pilot fleet that operates using 100 per cent biodiesel and launched in India with around 50,000 vehicles on the road today.

In addition, it is working on an electric version of its mini truck, the Maxximo, and has an electric three-wheeler, Bijlee.

REVA meanwhile, is most famous for its electric vehicles under the G-Wiz brand and has more than 3,500 vehicles on the road. It also launched two new electric cars at least year’s Frankfurt Motor Show – the NXR and NXG (see article).