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News 6 Iyar 5767, April 24, '07








More Published: 01/30/07, 2:20 PM / Last Update: 01/30/07, 9:13 AM
Electric-Car Factory in Israel Discussed at Davos

by Hillel Fendel


(IsraelNN.com) The idea was originally that of Shai Agassi, President of Germany's SAP, the world's largest business software company. Agassi, a Raanana native who was chosen in 2003 by TIME/CNN as its #1 Global Business Influential, shared the idea with Peres.

Israel's Vice Premier told the car companies that the government would be willing to provide grants and tax benefits for the construction of such factories. Renault apparently showed significant interest in the idea.

Peres said that battery-operated cars manufactured in Israel could supply Israel, Jordan and the Palestinian Authority, thus guaranteeing its viability.

The main challenge of the project would be finding a way to cheaply manufacture an electric battery with which to start the car. Agassi expressed optimism that Israeli research and development teams could produce solutions, and the knowledge could help in building similar factories elsewhere.

Israel's long-term interest is to reduce its dependency on oil. To this end, the government is also considering encouraging Israelis to replace their gas-powered cars with electric ones. Subsidies would be provided for the purpose.

Gil Melamed, Maariv's automobile commentator, explains that Israel cannot realistically consider manufacturing cars, but rather batteries that would power the electric vehicles. "What prevents electric cars from becoming the perfect solution to the problems of air pollution and the dependence on fuel," Melamed writes, "is the lack of a good enough technology for the storing of electric energy. The batteries that currently exist do not last long enough before needing to be recharged, which itself takes too long... If Israel invests in developing battery technology and production of advanced batteries, we can definitely become an important player in the car industry of the future."




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1. There is a lot of energy
Paavo Saukko, Finland (30/01/07)

1. There is a lot of energy
in the sun! In Israel the sun is shining almost whole a year.
So put a lot of suncells
all over the car and it will get a lot of energy while standing in park. So you are able to drive tens of kms every day with that energy. It is very simple.
Paavo Saukko, Finland (30/01/07)
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2. electric car :-)
ED in Oregon, (30/01/07)

2. electric car :-)
Terrific idea, Israel. If you get any news from the USofA, you see how the major manufactures are fighting to catch up with Japan and others. I was just in the process of writing to GM to suggest a electric car for us. Some say it cannot be done. NONSENSE! If they can build an electric motor, they can build an electric car. One needs to have a storage system that will power a 100 horse electric motor 300 miles using three high wattage alternators. Two to keep the batteries charged and one to keep the electric motor supplied. Lighten up the frames by 1500 lbs as well. My Blazer is 4,000 lbs.
ED in Oregon, (30/01/07)
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3. WOW!
Patsy, Texas (30/01/07)

3. WOW!
Send one to me!
Patsy, Texas (30/01/07)
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4. Join the parade
Sidney, USA (30/01/07)

4. Join the parade
Arotech, an Israeli firm, has long had a zinc-air battery that makes electric buses and trucks feasible. The government of Israel has pretty much ignored them.

Altairnano in the U.S. has apparently developed a lithium battery that makes electric vehicles an option now.

A secretive company in Texas, EEstor, has leaked information that they have an ultra-capacitor that has bypassed the need for electric batteries in electric vehicles.

And while Solel, the world's leading builder of solar power plants, is an Israeli firm, it gets very little help from the government.


Sidney, USA (30/01/07)
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5. Electric cars
Dannel R. Ballesteros, Tampa, Florida (30/01/07)

5. Electric cars
This investment would be a good thing with the exception of including the Muslims!

Shalom,

Dan
Dannel R. Ballesteros, Tampa, Florida (30/01/07)
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6. President, Transit 2000 Inc.
Herman Pardes, Ocean, NJ 07712 (31/01/07)

6. President, Transit 2000 Inc.
Electric cars are definitely feasible if they become the primary vehicle in Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) system. An elevated guideway is the key element of such a system, parallel to existing roadways, with off-line srations where vehicles can be stored and acquired spaced every km. Check with Prof. Avishai Ceder at the Technion. He is completely familiar with the concept. There are no technical risks and recharging batteries can use solar energy at each off line station. I can come to Israel to discuss details. L'hitraot
Herman Pardes, Ocean, NJ 07712 (31/01/07)
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7. Claim that Israel cannot manufacture cars
Gilbert Simons, Seal Beach (31/01/07)

7. Claim that Israel cannot manufacture cars
This statement has no merit. Israel is fully capable of building cars from the ground up. It should and become a world player in the automobile market, like South Korea, Japan, Sweden and others. This is a clean industry. The sooner Israel successfully enters it the sooner the Arab states will lose their oil weapon to threaten Israel and the world.
Gilbert Simons, Seal Beach (31/01/07)
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8. Electric-Car Factory in Israel Discussed at Davos
Tom, Texas,USA (31/01/07)

8. Electric-Car Factory in Israel Discussed at Davos
Greetings:
This is an excellent idea.Just be sure all things you do and agree to and sign ,are for the good of the nation Israel.
Anything else and you fail as a leader.
Tom, Texas,USA (31/01/07)
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9. Israel taking the lead on electic cars.
Carolin, Kansas City (31/01/07)

9. Israel taking the lead on electic cars.
It has long been my greatest hope and dream that Israel would take the lead on any non-oil using means of transportation, and I am thrilled to read this article and see that my hopes are becoming reality. This is the one sure thing that will "calm" the Arab region down. Instead of just having a money pit in the earth, they will have to educate their children to do something besides hate. This is a win/win for everyone (except the oil cartels, and who cares about them). I have complete faith that Israeli scientist will come up with a realistic, affordable alternative to the curse of oil.
Carolin, Kansas City (31/01/07)
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10. Why not ?
Michael Vermont, Toronto (31/01/07)

10. Why not ?
Gil Melamed says that Israel cannot realistically consider manufacturing autos!If Israel built planes, why not cars ? Maybe politically, like how Canada's Avro Arrow was also halted? Is that what Gil meant by REALISTICALLY ?
Michael Vermont, Toronto (31/01/07)
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11. Had a vision for amazing car
Seer Morgan, London (31/01/07)

11. Had a vision for amazing car
So excited reading this!! I am a genuine prophet/seer & I had a vision last year of Israel producing a car that just flew along a highway from Egypt to Asyria. It had 3 dradle like gyroscopes grouped & spinning together very very fast in the engine. The answer is in the Gyroscope/dradle Exhibition in Israel.
Seer Morgan, London (31/01/07)
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12. Who Killed the Electric Car?
Dovid, Beit Shemesh (31/01/07)

12. Who Killed the Electric Car?
"What prevents electric cars from becoming the perfect solution......"is the lack of a good enough technology for the storing of electric energy. The batteries that currently exist do not last long enough before needing to be recharged, which itself takes too long..
HUMBUG!!! See
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kHQ4cEr5Wao
Dovid, Beit Shemesh (31/01/07)
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13. I have a better idea for the begging, pathetic vice premeire
Robert, oregon,usa (31/01/07)

13. I have a better idea for the begging, pathetic vice premeire
Having been involved in the industry for the last 26 years, I can tell you renault is the last company he should be talking to. anyway, how about granting tax breaks and incentives to Israelis who have the abilities, given the freedom, to build an Israeli designed and produced vehicle, electric or otherwise. having dealt with Israeli companies, I am of the opinion that Israeli biz is lazy not because it is lazy, but because of a socialistic government that thumb ties the potential of what could be world class manufacturing and production of home grown products. the world does not own you!
Robert, oregon,usa (31/01/07)
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14. Hi Ed
Robert, oregon, usa (31/01/07)

14. Hi Ed
Detroit is under the control of big oil, no doubt about it. US automakers have the technology and have done experiments with hydrocarbon fueled engines that were in the 80+% efficient range and have a bunch of electric and hybrid tech. remember Smokey Yunick? google him and read about his experiments on a fiero back in the 80's and how detroit basically slammed the door in his face and scoffed at his technology. only reasons we see some of this technology today is because of government squeeze on automakers, not too much though, lobbiest' abound in DC of course.best to you Ed
Robert, oregon, usa (31/01/07)
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15. What crap!
mike, Vienna, VA (01/02/07)

15. What crap!
If these idiots were serious about ending oil dependence,they would build nuclear-powered TDP plants. Israel's cities daily generate enough organic waste to fuel every car in the country. All that is needed is the infrastructure to turn the waste into oil using a proven process that already generates 80 barrels of high-quality diesel from chicken parts at a Tyson plant in Georgia. In the meantime, the plutonium generated by the nuclear reactors could be used to build more bombs. Of course, that would be a real solution, not window dressing.
mike, Vienna, VA (01/02/07)
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16. I drive an EV
Paul Scott, Santa Monica, CA (01/02/07)

16. I drive an EV
The comment that the batteries are not good enough is not factual. I have been driving a fully electric car manufactured by Toyota for over four years. Thousands of Californians we able to get production built EVs from several manufacturers in the 1990's and early this century before the cars were taken back and destroyed. See "Who Killed the Electric Car?"
My batteries are Nickel Metal Hydride and allow my car to be driven at highway speeds for up to 120 miles. How far to Israelies drive every day? I charge my car from solar generated power from a 3 kW PV system that runs my house and car.
Paul Scott, Santa Monica, CA (01/02/07)
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17. Making Oil Worthless
Brian, Johannesburg (01/02/07)

17. Making Oil Worthless
I think the major incentive to the success of the electric car would be making oil worthless. If this could be done I believe terrorists and terrorist supporting countries most of which survive and thrive on oil revenue would lose a lot of their influence and power. I look forward to the day that Saudi Arabians go back to being the poor backward nomads that they always were until oil came along. Baruch Hashem let oil become worthless, Israels existence depends on it.
Brian, Johannesburg (01/02/07)
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18. Israel EV, YES!
Marc Geller, San Francisco (01/02/07)

18. Israel EV, YES!
There is no country in the world better situated to develop an EV industry. See my blogpost on this: http://www.plugsandcars.blogspot.com
Marc Geller, San Francisco (01/02/07)
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19. Beware, Peres at Work!
Yehoshua Friedman, Kochav Hashachar, Israel (01/02/07)

19. Beware, Peres at Work!
It sounds like a good idea, and it may be. But it will be torpedoed because the US/CFR/EU/etc. intentionally build up the Arab terrorists against Israel, India, China and others. The oil money goes out of Saudi Arabia and funds terror. Also, whenever Israel is about to make big concessions and get whacked hard, Peres is out there telling us how much money we are going to make and it never happens.
Yehoshua Friedman, Kochav Hashachar, Israel (01/02/07)
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20. what crap indeed........
Robert, oregon,usa (02/02/07)

20. what crap indeed........
need to read the article before we get all excited and talk about Israeli technology folks. its about so called jobs not technological development. the tech is european not Israeli. Israel does not produce any of the PV tech they sell, it comes from EU, mainly germany, you know the country that burned six million of us and five million others? is repackaged and sold. buying and selling like fred and lamont pretty much sums up Israeli Solar tech. I would come there and choke about half of you, then we could build something on our own.
Robert, oregon,usa (02/02/07)
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21. addendum to #4
i, (05/02/07)

21. addendum to #4
The zinc air people got ignored by the local gov/industry, and are currently developing the technology in Germany where they appreciate good science.
i, (05/02/07)
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22. Mike, if you can solve all of Israel's
Jew, Israel (12/02/07)

22. Mike, if you can solve all of Israel's
problems singlehandedly, then what are you doing in America? Once you solve all of the problems, Israel will be inhabitable for you, and you won't have to sit in the diaspora and preach to the Israelis.
Jew, Israel (12/02/07)
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23. electric cars-yes great in hot area
yahn goodey, cold as the opposite to h (12/02/07)

23. electric cars-yes great in hot area
if scientists ever perfect the battery or the fuel cell an electric car would be fantastic but in the meantime if you have to drive- a small diesel powered car makes the most sense as long as you live in a warm climate otherwise in the cold i live in a gasoline engine with 0-30w oil in the crankcase is the only thing you can depend on for the engine to start every time.must be nice to live in a perfect climate-send the pals here-they'll spend all the time they now spend complaining about us just working to pay for the heating bills so they dont freeze to death-global warming doesnt exist here.
yahn goodey, cold as the opposite to h (12/02/07)
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E.W.

i wish this dream will come true , it's very important for israel to produce its own energy resources.

Kappa21

What the **** do we look like?
1960's here.

WAKE UP PEOPLE!!!
We stopped being a industrialist country by the end of 1980's/early 1990s!!! Face it...we are a service driver and innovative nation.

WE CAN design the car and engineer the engine and the specs..
but there is no way and no space to go and make these cars like we did for Sussita and Sabra and all that. Its just not possible. You cant get the man power to do so...
and it will turn out to be a shady job...

I say.... what i always say...whether to warm me with clothes, to crunch my numbers, to bring me entertainment like xbox and to make my automobiles...
LET THE CHINESE DO IT

and we'll gladly pick it up FOB Eilat

ira

You are kind of narrow minded. Not everyone in Israel s cut out to be a scientist or engineer. Israel does produce it's own tanks and other military gear. If Israel can come up with the designs for an electric car it will be able to produce it in Israel.After all Iscar is an Israeli manufacturing company which was just bought for over a billion dollars. Today in advance manufacturing there are more and more robotics any way.

Kappa21

Look.....
Unless you have a better picture than please show it, cause im not feeling that we are in the process of selling these cars for 60,000 a piece.

Infact, in the next few years, these Electric powered cars would come down in price gradually.. Just like all those RFID and magnetic tagging crap. It will be very effecient to buy these cars....

No, not everyone can be a scientist, but at the same time as our economy expands..not everyone will be effecient to work in a factory, make what? 12/hr and get heavily subsidized by the government for ages to come....