Archive for November, 2009

London could be awash with electric cars by the middle of the next decade, as PSA Peugeot Citroen admitted it is targeting the capital in a big sales drive for its new iOn and C-Zero models — but only if the Government offers good enough subsidies for motorists to buy them.

The French motor giant said that it intends to put its first mainstream electric cars in London motor showrooms by this time next year.

The company’s research and manufacturing chief, Guillaume Faury, told the Evening Standard that a three-year, €3 billion (£2.7 billion) ramp-up will see Peugeot Citroen aiming for 25,000 sales in Europe by 2015.

“We will be targeting big cities with congestion charges and emissions zones,” said Faury. “London is naturally an important place for us.”

The iOn and C-Zero hatchbacks which are being developed with Mitsubishi of Japan will have an 80-mile range on a single charge.

The most expensive part of the cars are their lithium-ion batteries costing around £10,000 each.

Peugeot Citroen is making it plain that its electric cars will not be commercially viable unless there are substantial government subsidies. In the UK, Government incentive schemes being talked about could provide up to £5000 to buy a new electric car.

“Incentive schemes will make or break this technology,” said Faury. “We are saying on price that in a pay-per-month finance package the cost of an electric car will be no more expensive than running a conventional car on finance.”
Source:thisislondon.co.uk

Proposal from Expert Panel for Singapore to Develop Differentiating Advantages in Clean Energy.

The International Advisory Panel (IAP) on Clean Energy concluded its second meeting today. The IAP re-affirmed the strong market potential of Clean Energy and made the following recommendations to strengthen Singapore’s competitiveness in the Clean Energy initiative and the broader Sustainable Development space:

• Promote test-bedding and innovation in Electric Vehicles, Smart Grids, Green Buildings and Districts, and Waste-to-Energy Solutions

• Develop systems integration as a differentiating advantage for Singapore

• Develop a framework for commercializing Singapore’s expertise in Sustainable Development.

IAP Co-Chairman Lord Ron Oxburgh said, “Recent years have seen increased attention to areas such as electric vehicles, smart grids, green buildings and waste-to-energy. These opportunities have a good fit with Singapore’s strong interdisciplinary capabilities and will bring with them a substantial amount of economic and environmental benefits.”

IAP Co-Chairman Mr Leo Yip remarked, “The panel’s endorsement of Singapore’s progress in Clean Energy is very encouraging. Their recommendations on new growth areas for Singapore will help us accelerate our efforts to be a leader in Clean Energy and Sustainable Development, and create new opportunities for companies based here, and for our workers.”

Promote test-bedding and innovation in Electric Vehicles, Smart Grids, Green Buildings and Districts, and Waste-to-Energy

The panel recommended that Singapore move quickly to capture the opportunities from the potential of Electric Vehicles (EV), Smart Grids, Green Buildings and Districts, and Waste-to-Energy. These sectors are poised for strong growth in the coming years and can leverage on Singapore’s capabilities.

In the field of EV, Singapore can leverage on its infocomm technology, electronics and power engineering strengths, to develop competencies in EV charging infrastructure, power engineering, telematics, vehicle diagnostics and energy storage. The IAP also noted yesterday’s announcement by the Energy Market Authority (EMA) to establish the Intelligent Energy Systems pilot test-bed programme, and opined that this would help advance the development of smart grid solutions in demand management, smart pricing and create export opportunities.

Develop systems integration as a differentiating advantage for Singapore

The IAP recommended that Singapore leverage its expertise in systemslevel innovation to create a differentiating advantage in Clean Energy and Sustainable Development. They pointed to Singapore’s success in Water technologies as an example. IAP members shared that these markets are driven by the interplay between technology advancements, market needs and policy choices.

The panel was thus pleased to note HDB’s S$31 million Solar Test-bed programme to build solar energy capabilities through trials at 30 HDB precincts island-wide. The IAP encouraged the Government to expand this effort of providing large scale integrated living laboratories for novel Clean Energy and Sustainable Development solutions.

Members opined that the Government can help grow this and other cleantech sectors by playing the role of a lead user and smart procurer. They also urged that attention be placed on developing commercially viable models for financing such activities in the private sector.
Develop a framework for commercialising Singapore’s expertise in Sustainable Development

The IAP observed that Singapore was regarded by many cities and countries in the region as a reference site for sustainable urban development. Members urged that Singapore capitalise on this and commercialise its expertise and knowhow, similar to how Singapore has done so in Water technologies. Such a commercialisation framework will entail an ecosystem of multipliers comprising testbeds, incubators and financing organisations. Singapore’s progress in growing the Clean Energy industry

The IAP also commended the rapid progress made since the sector was identified as a key growth opportunity for Singapore in 2007. Panel members strongly endorsed Singapore’s overall blueprint to grow the Clean Energy industry and pointed out that Singapore’s existing industrial strengths in semiconductor, precision engineering and chemicals provided a strong base of capabilities and skilled manpower that Clean Energy players can tap into. Specifically for solar energy, Singapore also has an advantageous geographical position to tap on the Asian sunbelt market.

On a whole-of-government basis, Singapore has set aside funding of S$350 million for Clean Energy research and development including $170 million from the National Research Foundation (NRF). The IAP reviewed and endorsed the priorities of the Solar Energy Research Institute of Singapore (SERIS) located at the National University of Singapore (NUS). Panel members were pleased with the progress of SERIS and regarded the S$130 million centre as a technology vanguard for Singapore in the areas of (i) wafer and thin-film silicon photovoltaic devices; (ii) novel photovoltaic devices and (iii) innovative materials for solar and energy-efficient buildings.

In addition, the panel welcomed the establishment of the S$60 million Centre for Sustainable Energy Research (CSER) at the Nanyang Technological University (NTU). CSER will focus on wind and marine renewables, green buildings, energy storage, and fuel cells. Leveraging on NTU’s strong, existing capabilities in power engineering, power electronics, materials and aeromechanical capabilities, CSER will diversify Singapore’s clean energy landscape and help Singapore develop a more comprehensive industry cluster.

The IAP also lauded Singapore’s efforts to invest in the training of Singaporeans and attract international talent – such as the leadership of SERIS – in the Clean Energy field. This manpower pool will become a key differentiator for Singapore, given the shortage of expertise globally as a result of the industry’s rapid growth in the last few years.

Conclusion

The Panel concluded that Singapore is well on track in its efforts to develop a robust and competitive Clean Energy industry. The economic growth in Asia is attracting many international companies to establish operations in the region and the IAP believed that Singapore is well-placed to attract these investments. Members also advised Singapore to be the gateway between India and China. They encouraged Singapore to remain on course and implement its comprehensive developmental blueprint to position itself as a leading global Clean Energy hub.

Source:thegovmonitor.com

U.S. electric-car maker Tesla Motors plans to go public soon, two sources familiar with the matter said, amid growing interest in green technology and battery-powered vehicles.

An IPO filing from the 6-year-old start-up, best known for its $109,000 all-electric Roadster, is expected any day, said one of the sources. The person did not give a specific time frame, although IPOs typically take several months.

Tesla spokesman Ricardo Reyes declined to comment on what he called “rumor or speculation.”

Tesla Model S

(Credit: Caroline McCarthy/CNET)

Tesla would mark the first public offering from a U.S. automaker since Henry Ford’s Ford Motor debuted its shares in 1956. The IPO represents a landmark in the resurgence of electric-car technology that most carmakers had dismissed as impractical until recently.

The company’s chairman Elon Musk said early last year that an IPO was a possibility in either late 2008 or 2009.

But the financial market turmoil following the collapse of Lehman Bros. in the latter half of 2008 virtually shut down the IPO market. The appetite for IPOs has picked up since mid-September this year with a robust pace of new filings.

Tesla’s IPO would follow the successful debut of lithium ion battery maker A123 Systems, whose shares rallied 50 percent on their first day of trading on September 25.

Analysts have said that the success of A123, the first green-technology IPO this year, would encourage more venture capital-backed green companies to go public.

Tesla will compete with established automakers like Ford, General Motors, and Nissan Motor, all of which are racing to launch electric or plug-in hybrid vehicles. Tesla, by contrast, is a small player with a high-end market and limited production.

A combination of factors has driven the recent interest in developing electric, or partially electric vehicles, including the Obama administration’s push to have 1 million rechargeable vehicles on U.S. roads by 2015 and low-cost Department of Energy loans for manufacturers.

Venture funds back green cars
The carmaker is developing a second, lower-cost model, an electric sedan known as the Model S, which will have a base price of $49,900.

Tesla said in September it delivered 700 Roadsters since February 2008. The Roadster, which is built on a Lotus frame, can go from 0 to 60 miles an hour in less than four seconds, making it faster than a Porsche 911 or a Ferrari Spider.

The electric-car start-up was offered $465 million in low-cost loans by the U.S. Department of Energy to help build the new Model S. Tesla said it will build the new car in California.

Tesla’s investors include Google co-founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page.

Other investors include Daimler; Abu Dhabi-based Aabar Investments, which owns a stake in Daimler; and venture capital funds Valor Equity Partners, Technology Partners, The Westly Group, and Compass Venture Partners.

Tesla said it had achieved overall corporate profitability in July with about $1 million of earnings on revenue of $20 million.

But like established automakers, survival in the hyper-competitive U.S. automotive market has not been easy for Tesla. The company had to face cost overruns and production delays for the Roadster.

Source Reuters / CNet