Nissan LEAF with 300 km Range on sale by 2017

Nissan's next-generation Leaf electric vehicle will have a new battery that more than doubles its range. And Infiniti's delayed electric car will debut with the improved battery by early 2017.
Nissan executives shed more light on the automaker's next EVs, saying better range is key to higher sales. Nissan launched the Leaf in December 2010 and has already improved its performance. But engineers are working on a big jump with a revamped battery by 2017.
A new battery chemistry will debut by then for use by Infiniti and Nissan, said Andy Palmer, executive vice president in charge of Nissan's zero emissions and Infiniti businesses.
"The battery chemistry is all about range and energy density. That's where you see the technology moving very, very fast," he said in an interview last month at the Beijing auto show. "This really is the game-changing technology."



Longer range
Palmer declined to offer a target range. But the battery must deliver up to 300 kilometers, or 186 miles, for EVs to present an everyday alternative to the hydrogen fuel cell cars that rivals are developing, he said.
During an interview at the LA Auto Show, Pierre Loing, vice president of product and advanced planning and strategy at Nissan, hinted that his company may offer multi-pack size option that might increase range to 400 km.
Nissan have been working in a lithium nickel manganese cobalt battery chemistry since 2009 that was expected to enter production by 2015.
Nissan has not announced timing for the next-generation Leaf. But Palmer said the car is on a normal product cadence, from a full global launch dating to 2013: "I think if you thought about a normal model cycle from 2013, that would be more realistic."
That would put the next Leaf's arrival just after Nissan's Power 88 business plan, which ends March 31, 2017, he added.
The Infiniti EV, however, will go on sale "close enough to be counted" as part of Power 88 and should arrive before the luxury brand gets its long-awaited top-shelf halo car, Palmer said.
"I think the EV will come earlier," Palmer said, citing tightening government emissions rules, particularly in China. "To some extent, EV is now becoming practically a requirement."


Better batteries
The Infiniti EV will get the company's next-generation battery chemistry and feature wireless inductive charging, he said.
Infiniti had delayed the EV to wait for better battery technology. The debut was initially slated for 2014.
The Infiniti EV may have a greater range than the Leaf because its sedan packaging can accommodate a bigger battery.

Source: Electric Vehicle News

Coulomb Technologies and DBT - Joint Offering

When the two biggest players in the electric vehicle, EV charging station industry start working together, everyone listens. Find out what the potential of this means for EV owners.

ChargePoint, part of Coulomb Technologies and DBT are the two biggest players when it comes to charging stations in the EV and plug-in hybrid, PHEV field. Pike Research has already pitted these two manufacturers as top leaders of the EV charging stations heap. This is big news that will probably go unnoticed for some time but guess what happens when the two biggest players join hands? I’ll let you speculate.

Joint Offering, A Prelude To More? OK, this is only a joint offering but it could lead to the two companies working closer and closer together, thus pulling their weight to define the entire charging stations field. Announced at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, DBT USA revealed its North American level II charging stations will have the option to connect to ChargePoint. Why is this important news? We’ve speculate for sometime that Coulomb Technologies, and its ChargePoint entity that describes itself as the largest global EV charging network has been moving more away from manufacturing charging stations toward managing energy. This would be another step in that direction.

Coulomb Technologies Charging Stations

ChargePoint & DBT in Numbers. How big are they? With over 10,000 units in 30 countries, ChargePoint’s number will be revealed soon but suffice it to say, its network is already present with independently owned stations in over 14 countries.

We all know what happens when two giants hold hands down the road, either a consolidation or a strategic partnership that usually defines the landscape of an industry. Think of the early computer days when Microsoft swallowed up local software makers and eventually pulled its portfolio together to offer an office suite called Microsoft Office. Those old enough will remember the problems converging Word Perfect documents, a better word processor to Microsoft’s obscure and anti-competitive behavior.

DBT Charging Station (Paris)

Will the electric vehicle, plug-in hybrid and in general alternative energy vehicle industry go through a round of consolidations, buy-outs and anti-competitive practices? It might be too early to tell but if the past and recent history are anything to gauge from, it could certainly happen. Fortunately, we are nowhere near that point in time and can hopefully learn from our past mistakes and avoid future market share stranglehold.

Will have to wait and see how the competition reacts to this news and how it will effect their products. In the meantime, DBT and ChargePoint cooperating is a healthy sign that the EV and PHEV industry is coming along nicely, building up its resources and starting strategic partnerships.

Source: Torque News