Better Place, the US start up developing charging stations, expects to serve thousands of electric cars on Israeli roads by the second half of 2011, CEO Shai Agassi said.
Speaking in Tel Aviv, Agassi said that a country wide test would begin towards the end of the year and would be ready for a full commercial launch by the second half of 2011 after which 1,000 cars a month will come into Israel.
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He said that the company chose Israel because it is “a small country but big enough to test a longer drive” and due to its “high desire to get off oil for geopolitical reasons”.
California-based Better Place is looking to take advantage of plans by Nissan, Renault, General Motors and Toyota to offer rechargeable electric vehicles.
Renault has plans to make 100,000 electric cars by 2016 while ‘plugged-in’ vehicles could capture 20% of the market by 2030, according to a report by IHS Global Insight.
Better Place has signed agreements in Israel with 92 companies that lease vehicles for employees, a potential initial market of 45,000 cars, Agassi said.
The company expects the majority of cars on Israeli roads to be electric by 2020.
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that reducing Israel’s dependence on petroleum is one of the state’s vital interests. Israel Corp, a holding company that invests in energy, said last month it would invest an additional US$72m in Better Place, bringing its stake to 30%.
