Does anybody remember Better Place? It seems quite a few people do, especially in Israel. Shai Agassi is one of many brilliant businessmen to come from the country that many know as Silicon Wadi or the Start-Up Nation, but according to Brian Blum, the author of the new book Totaled, “Agassi was, and remains one… Read more »
An Israeli court has approved the sale of bankrupt Better Place’s assets to a consortium led by solar energy pioneer Yosef Abramowitz, also known as Captain Sunshine. The group also includes Canadian investment banker Henry Shiner, and the non-profit EV Drivers Association. It will pay 18 million shekels ($4.9 million) for Better Place’s Israeli assets,… Read more »
When Better Place was founded in 2007, it was a promising new company, with a visionary leader in Israeli entrepreneur Shai Agassi, and several good ideas, notably a strategy of concentrating on places that are likely to be early adopters of electrification (Israel, Denmark, Hawaii). Better Place raised around $850 million from investors, and got… Read more »
The future of the battery swapping concept looks dim, which is bad news for the pioneering firm Better Place. In an interview with Danish news outlet Energi Watch, Renault-Nissan chief Carlos Ghosn seemed to say that Renault’s Fluence ZE will probably be the first and last production vehicle to offer battery swapping capability. “When you… Read more »
Better Place announced this week that Evan Thornley, the company’s chief for Australia, has been promoted to CEO of the global company.
The company already has pilot programs going in China, Japan, Israel and Denmark, and this week it began a new trial project with the deployment of 10 electric taxis.
The company’s 55 battery switch stations, located in Israel and Denmark, are in the final stages of a four-month testing period.
That long-awaited event happened last week, as the company delivered 100 Renault Fluence EVs to Israeli customers and launched their network.
Eldan will acquire several hundred Renault Fluence Z.E. electric cars from Better Place in 2012. It will be the first company to rent electric cars in Israel.
Better Place, the startup that aims to build a worldwide network of EV charging and battery-switching stations, announced Friday that it has scored $200 million in additional equity financing, bringing the company’s valuation to $2.25 billion.