Mar

Electric Cars Could Be Coming to Japan in a Big Way

Posted by admin Published in Electric Car

Now that he’s set the stage for Israel to embrace electric vehicles, former Silicon Valley entrepreneur Shai Agassi has his sights set on Japan. Globes reports that Agassi, who left SAP to launch Project Better Place, has spoken with Japanese trade leaders about a joint venture similar to the deal he brokered with Renault and Nissan to bring EVs to Israel.

“The visit to Japan is part of the process of finding local partners who can participate in the project,” Agassi told Globes, declining to say precisely who he spoke to. “There are talks with Japanese conglomerates on agreements.”

Agassi wants to electrify transportation by selling EVs like cell phones. Renault and Nissan will mass-produce electric vehicles they’ll start selling

in Israel in 2011. The cars (that’s one of them in the pic) will use lithium-ion batteries and offer a range of 60 miles
in the city and 100 miles on the highway. Project Better Place says it
will install 500,000 charging stations all through Israel, and Renault
is developing battery packs that can be replaced at automated exchange
depots.

According to Globes, Agassi says Japan is the perfect place for electric vehicles considering it is “a transportation island “ where large numbers of society living in dense urban areas drive short distances.