Posts Tagged by electric transportation
Don’t Predict a Smooth Adoption of … Anything
| May 18, 2012 | Posted by Craig Shields under Sustainability |
For those who predict a smooth, predictable adoption of renewable energy, electric transportation, or anything at all, I enter into evidence this graphic showing the importance of social media in our world today.
As this is the day of Facebook’s IPO, it seems fitting to write a few words on the subject and ask: Did anyone forecast that social media would come to this position of cultural and financial dominance a few years ago? Read More
Purveyors of Electric Vehicles Need To Offer a Reasonable Business Proposition
| May 15, 2012 | Posted by Craig Shields under Electric Vehicles |
Here’s a press release (dressed as a news article) from Aerovironment, a company with a division that makes electric vehicle chargers. And here’s a line from it that reminds me of the adage: “If the only tool you have is a hammer, every problem looks like a nail”:
The consumer is just looking for something that works and allows them to charge fast.
Wrong.
The consumer is looking for a reasonable business proposition in terms of price and range. He won’t pay twice as much for a car, only to be limited, inconvenienced, and fearful that he’s investing in a dead-end technology.
Prospective Electric Vehicle Owners Analyze Break-Even Point on Fuel Costs
| May 10, 2012 | Posted by Craig Shields under Electric Vehicles |
Cameron Atwood writes:
I recall seeing figures indicating the $45k Volt pays off the difference in savings on gas over electric cost over its ICE (internal combustion engine) brethren in six years. That’s not especially dismal.
It depends on how far you drive, and, in the case of a plug-in hybrid like the Volt, how you drive, i.e., how seldom you exceed the battery-only range (about 35 miles) and start to use gasoline. The analysis is easier with a battery electric like the LEAF. Let’s say: Read More
Hoopla Aside, Auto Manufacturers Not Anxious To Roll Out EVs
| May 8, 2012 | Posted by Craig Shields under Electric Vehicles |
A quick note from the electric vehicle show in Los Angeles this week:
It’s true that most of the credible car-makers have EV products scheduled for delivery in the not-too-distant future. But they’re obviously hedging their bets, delaying their market entrance as long as possible, so as to maximize the penetration of their pipeline of gasoline powered vehicles.
It’s pretty clear that their hearts are not in this. And why should this be otherwise? If you’re an auto OEM, you see nothing but an ocean of downside: billions of dollars of R&D, tons of a dozen different kinds of risk including exposure to tort attorneys from hell, diminution of sales revenues, huge costs of customer support and education (that will STILL wind them up with upset customers), the expense of supporting multiple platforms, shotgun weddings with charger suppliers and standards, etc. Read More
Where We’re Going In Clean Energy
| May 2, 2012 | Posted by Craig Shields under Photo-voltaics |
Here’s an article that gets to a couple of important points that are illustrative of where we are and where we’re going in clean energy.
• Financing solar photovoltaics. There is no doubt that homeowners would be more likely to invest in solar if the PV on their roofs could be integrated in their mortgage, just like their plumbing, HVAC, or electrical system.
• Integrating electric vehicles. My friend Paul Scott has enough PV on his roof that his Nissan LEAF very rarely has to plug in to the grid; thus the carbon footprint of his transportation is limited to the manufacturing of the vehicle (and the PV) itself. Not bad! Obviously, he’s an early adopter, but this concept is likely to go mainstream over the coming years.
Clean Car Calculator
| April 30, 2012 | Posted by Craig Shields under Electric Vehicles |
Here’s a “clean car calculator” in which users can plug in certain values and receive an instant assessment of the eco-impact of their vehicle. I’ll point out (before skeptics like reader Glenn Doty have the chance) that the methodology is subject to question; it uses the average cleanliness of the electric power in the user’s state, which differs from the overall impact of adding load anywhere on the grid in most of the US.
What’s the Plan For Phasing Out Fossil Fuels? Which Do You Want To Hear First? The Good News or the Bad News?
| April 29, 2012 | Posted by Craig Shields under Fossil Fuels |
Germany has installed enough photovoltaics that, at this point, coal-fired power plants are beginning to become unprofitable. This is driven by a combination of factors, e.g., that coal isn’t asked to provide power at the peak of the day, when both the sun and the price of electricity are at their zenith. Of course, most of us cheer when coal runs into trouble, but issues like this raise some fantastically interesting questions about the future of power generation – and transportation – as we migrate from fossil fuels into more sustainable modalities. Read More
IBM’s Vice President of Energy and Utilities — Making a Difference in Electric Transportation
| April 18, 2012 | Posted by Craig Shields under Electric Vehicles |
Here’s another quick note from San Diego, where I’m spending the day at the Plug-In Electric Vehicle Infrastructure USA 2012.
I just had a great conversation with Allan Schurr, IBM’s Vice President of Energy and Utilities. I performed quite a few projects for IBM over the 30 years that I functioned as a marketing consultant for the tech sector, and thus they’ll always occupy a warm spot in my heart — even if they did achieve their dominance in the late 20th century with the borderline abusive business tactics for which they were well known at the time.
Nowadays, we have a kinder, gentler — and I would say smarter IBM, a company dedicated to adding true value with its level of innovation, business strategy, and industry expertise. I’m delighted to see that IBM embraces electric transportation, and focuses on integrating its many information-related pieces, e.g., smart-grid. IBM’s done a great deal of work in early-adopter Denmark, where, for instance, an EV comes home at the end of a workday, gets plugged in, and waits patiently for the wind speed to cross a certain threshold, at which its charger switches on, thus minimizing the use of fossil fuels and maximizing the penetration of wind into the Danish grid-mix.
Great stuff, guys. Keep up the good work.
Prescription for Hawaii: Renewables, Electric Transportation
| April 15, 2012 | Posted by Craig Shields under Hydrokinetics |
Craig Rainey writes:
I just arrived back from a trip to Maui, HI and it continues to amaze me that they have 7000 acres of sugar cane, producing two crops/year, 90% refined into alcohol on island, over half of the cars on the road are flex fuel and they are importing gasoline from off island. Am I the only person out there that thinks that it just might be better for the island to adopt the Brazilian model?
I’ve spent a fair amount of time on Maui, and if I were they, I’d investigate skipping the carbon model altogether. They have an enormous amount of run-of-river hydro, with their huge elevations and incredible rainfall, as well as ocean thermal at their disposal. I believe that a truly fair-minded look at their energy and transportation scene would yield an attractive return on these renewables and electric transportation.
In fact, one of the dozen or so clean energy investment opportunities that I happen to favor is just perfect for the high head conditions that occur when rain falls in the mountains and runs quickly to the sea.
Extended Range Electric Vehicles and Plug-in Hybrids
| April 11, 2012 | Posted by Craig Shields under Electric Vehicles |
Frequent commenter MarcoPolo writes:
Craig, EREVs (extended range electric vehicles), are not simply ‘Plug-in hybrids’. The GM Volt is an astonishing example of US engineering, and advanced technology. All Americans should feel proud of the GM Volt.
I have to admit that it’s a cool idea, and I’m glad that GM appears to be onboard with a migration, albeit a slow one, away from oil. But I do believe that the EREV (as they call it) will be a short-lived concept that will have little bearing on the future of transportation.
Btw, the difference between the terms “extended range electric vehicle” (EREV) and “plug-in hybrid” is semantics. In fact, I recall thinking when I saw that GM had coined the phrase EREV in an attempt to differentiate the Volt from the other plug-in hybrids, “Now that’s marketing at its finest.” All such vehicles have batteries that provide a given range, and internal combustion engines (ICEs) that extend that range. Yes, there are variations on the theme as to what precisely the ICE does (charge the battery? power the car? both?) But we’re really talking about a single concept.
