Israel’s Ministry of Transport has given the go-ahead for electric car venture Better Place to import 13 Renault Fluence electric cars for testing.
The vehicles are due to arrive within two weeks and will test the battery recharging stations that already exist at several sites including Better Place’s visitor centre at Pi Glilot outside Tel Aviv.
Importing the electric cars was granted after the Minister of Transport Israel Katz signed a supervision directive on new goods and services, including relaxations on new import permits for cars. The motor vehicles department director outlined that within a few days the department will approve the imports of the Fluence prototype for marketing in Israel after it meets the country’s standards. The Israel Standards Institution will formulate the Israeli standards for the electric cars’ recharging and service and maintenance systems in 2011.
In addition, Katz outlined that the ministry will continue to offer support to projects that contribute to vehicle safety and the environment with more than 10,000 hybrid cars and 8,000 natural gas driven vehicles currently being used in Israel.
