A dozen EV models exhibited in Geneva

Electric cars (okay, and hybrids) are definitely the stars at the 2011 Geneva Auto Show in Switzerland. Here's a list of the models unveiled or exhibited this week:

Ford Focus electric
The 2012 Focus family comes with an electric version with the capability to fully charge in three to four hours total.

Chevrolet Volt
The American Car of the Year 2011, a hybrid already available for order in the US, is still one of the stars in Geneva. Its European cousin, the Opel Ampera, will soon roll out to the Old Continent's streets.

BMW Active E
This German sports car can accelerate from 0-60 mph in about 8.5 seconds and has a top speed of 90 mph.

Volvo V60
A highly efficient plug-in electric hybrid and the first station-wagon electric vehicle.

Toyota iQ EV
The electric version of the popular Japanese microcar.

Tesla Model S
The troubled's Californian start-up's super car.

Honda Fit EV
Honda's first all-electric vehicle.

Smart fortwo concept car
Modeled after the company's popular non-electric version.

Tata Pixel concept car
Tata claims that the Pixel will return more than 60 mpg and only releases 89 grams of C02 per kilometer. The efficiency comes by way of a 1.2-liter three-cylinder turbodiesel, which, though it isn't a full hybrid, employs stop-start technology and regenerative battery charging.

Nissan ES Flow concept car
Nissan's first sport's concept car can go from 0-62 miles per hour in 5 seconds.

Nissan Leaf
One of the first EVs on the market, the vehicle can go up to 90 miles per hour, can get 80% charge in a half an hour, and its batteries feature a 100,000 mile warrantee.

Rolls-Royce Phantom Experimental Car
Lotus and Rolls-Royce teamed up to produce this luxury EV, which possesses the largest battery ever used in an electric passenger car, for 'market study purposes'.

Source: Go Electric Drive
and Autoblog Green

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BMW i8 to star in Mission Impossible IV

Tom Cruise will drive the electric/diesel hybrid i8 in new Mission Impossible film The Ghost Protocol, says The Sun.

And it will go on sale in 2013 as part of a radical brand of BMW electric/hybrid cars.

The brand, launched this week in Munich, will be called BMWi - with the first models an electric city car, the BMW i3, and the high-performance i8 coupé.

The i3 will be a zero-emission all-electric supermini with room for four and a range in excess of 100 miles. It is aimed at commuters around the world. But the car that will change the image of electric motoring will be the stunning i8, a four-seat coupé with supercar performance, but fuel economy of nearly 90mpg, a range of 435 miles and CO2 emissions of less than 100g/km - and that means no road tax.

The incredible performance comes from a relatively small 1.5-litre turbo diesel, boosted by two electric motors, that delivers 0-62mph in 4.9 seconds and a top speed of 155mph. Expect a price around £100,000 plus.

BMW's Sales and Marketing boss Ian Robertson said the new brand and cars would "radically alter the motor industry and set a new benchmark for premium electric cars".

He added: "These cars and the i brand will shift the game and shape the future of motoring.

"It will change the way we build cars with new materials and production techniques and the way we drive."

He said it was too early to talk prices for the new cars but said that the i3 - despite being a small city car - would have a premium price and cost more than such rivals as the Nissan Leaf and Chevrolet Volt.

Luxury The ground-breaking brand follows a decision at the weekend by Rolls- Royce, also owned by BMW, to develop an all-electric Phantom as the first ultra-luxury electric car.

And BMW are also working on plans for an electric Mini - the German Group own Mini - to complete their electric range.

To that end BMW have been testing a fleet of 600 prototype electric Minis in the UK and around the world for the last two years.

And research from those drivers who took part in the Mini electric trials has been vital in developing the BMW i3 city car.

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Friedman defende fim da petrodependência

Thomas Friedman: O que está a acontecer hoje no mundo árabe é a mãe de todos os toques a rebate. E o que diz a voz por trás do sino é claro como água: "EUA, vocês construíram a vossa casa no sopé de um vulcão. O vulcão está a lançar lava em todas as direcções e tudo indica que está prestes a explodir. Saiam daqui!" Neste caso, "saiam daqui" significa "ponham fim à vossa dependência do petróleo".

Duvido que alguém esteja a torcer mais que eu pela vitória dos movimentos democráticos no mundo árabe. Mas mesmo que as coisas corram bem, o percurso será longo e tortuoso. O melhor que podíamos fazer neste momento era lançar um imposto de 25 cêntimos (cerca de 20 cêntimos de euro), num processo faseado a começar com 5 cêntimos por mês em 2012 e usar este dinheiro para amortizar o défice.

Aprovar legislação que imponha um aumento futuro de combustíveis produz efeito de imediato, observa o economista de Princeton Alan Blinder. O efeito sobre o investimento e a aquisição de combustíveis é muito anterior ao aumento efectivo do preço. Com uma pequena taxa sobre a gasolina podemos reforçar a nossa segurança económica e estratégica, ajudar a vender mais carros eléctricos e contribuir activamente para a generalização dos valores democráticos no Médio Oriente, livres de preocupações quanto aos nossos interesses petrolíferos. Sim, teríamos de pagar mais pelos combustíveis - mas seja como for eles vão aumentar; o melhor é ficarmos com parte do aumento para nós.

Já estava na altura. Ao longo dos últimos 50 anos, os EUA (bem como a Europa e a Ásia) trataram o Médio Oriente como se não passasse de uma série gigantesca de bombas de gasolina: Arábia Saudita, Irão, Kuwait, Bahrein, Egipto, Líbia, Iraque, Emirados Árabes, e por aí fora. A nossa mensagem à região sempre foi a mesma: "O negócio é o seguinte: vocês mantêm as bombas a funcionar e os preços baixos e não precisam de se preocupar muito com os israelitas. Pelo que nos diz respeito, podem fazer o que vos apetecer. Podem privar os vossos povos de direitos civis, a corrupção é a que quiserem, a intolerância pregada nas mesquitas também, os vossos jornais podem atribuir ao Ocidente todos os projectos de conspiração que entenderem e as mulheres podem continuar analfabetas. Se quiserem também podem criar estados-providência sem capacidade de inovação e os vossos jovens não precisam de estudar. Desde que as bombas não parem de funcionar e vocês não se metam muito com os judeus, podem fazer tudo."

Foi esta atitude que permitiu que o mundo árabe se tivesse isolado do curso da história nos últimos 50 anos - ao longo dos quais foi governado pelos mesmos reis e ditadores. Pois bem, a história está de volta. A combinação da subida do preço dos alimentos com o desemprego em massa dos jovens e as redes sociais está a permitir que estes jovens se organizem contra os seus líderes e derrubem as barreiras do medo que mantinha estas cleptocracias.

Mas agora é melhor apertarmos os cintos de segurança. Não estamos a preparar-nos propriamente para um passeio, porque acabou de saltar a tampa a toda uma região com instituições frágeis, uma sociedade civil com pouco vigor e praticamente nenhuma tradição democrática ou cultura de inovação. O relatório das Nações Unidas para o Desenvolvimento Árabe de 2002 avisava quanto a tudo isto, embora a Liga Árabe se tenha assegurado de que este relatório era ignorado no mundo árabe e esquecido no Ocidente. No entanto, este documento - compilado por vários intelectuais árabes dirigidos por Nader Fergany, um especialista egípcio em estatística - foi profético. Merece ser relido à luz dos acontecimentos recentes para avaliarmos a dificuldade enfrentada pela transição democrática.

Segundo o relatório, o mundo árabe sofre com três graves défices - educacional, de liberdade e de independência das mulheres. Um resumo deste relatório no número do Outono de 2002 da "Middle East Quarterly" recordava os dados-chave: o PIB combinado de todo o mundo árabe era inferior ao de Espanha. Os gastos per capita com educação nos países árabes baixaram de 20% dos países industrializados nos anos 80 para 10% em meados dos anos 90. Se relacionarmos o número de artigos científicos com a população total, a média do mundo árabe por milhão de habitantes foi cerca de 2% da do mundo industrializado. Quando os dados foram reunidos, traduziam-se no mundo árabe 300 livros por ano, um 50 avos do que se traduz na Grécia. Em sete regiões do mundo, os países árabes obtiveram a classificação mais baixa da Freedom House no que dizia respeito a liberdade no fim dos anos 90. No início do século xxi havia no mundo árabe mais de 60 milhões de adultos analfabetos, sobretudo mulheres. Daqui a dez anos, o Iémen poderá ser o primeiro país do mundo a ficar sem água.

É esta a tão louvada "estabilidade" proporcionada por estes ditadores - a das sociedades paradas no tempo. O sucesso dos movimentos democráticos no Egipto e noutros países e a sua capacidade de se modernizarem seria excelente para eles, mas também para o resto do mundo. Temos de fazer o que for possível para os ajudar. Porém, ninguém deve ter ilusões sobre o regresso dos árabes à história. O processo será convulsivo. Vamos torcer por eles, sem nos intrometermos.

Artigo originalmente publicado no New York Times. Versão portuguesa publicada na edição de quinta-feira do i

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Estonia plans nationwide mobility network

Estonia announced Thursday that it would sell 10 million carbon credits to Japan's Mitsubishi Corporation and use the proceeds to set up a nationwide network of charge-points for electric cars, the AFP reported.

Prime Minister Andrus Ansip said that the government had approved the sale of the unused credits -- tradeable allowances granted by Brussels to European Union members in a drive to limit greenhouse gas emissions by industry.

"Under a Green Investment Scheme, the proceeds will be invested into the establishment of a country-wide charging infrastructure for electric vehicles," Ansip told reporters.

Around 500 Mitsubishi i-MiEV electric cars are to be provided to local authorities for use by social workers. A grant scheme is also to be set up to support the purchase of electric vehicles by private individuals.

"We hope that around 1,000 electric cars will be on our streets by the end of 2012," Ansip added. That figure includes the 500 allocated to local authorities.

Estonia -- a former Soviet-ruled nation of 1.3 million which joined the EU in 2004 -- holds a general election on Sunday.

The centre-right Ansip rejected suggestions that he had made the announcement Thursday in a drive to get the environmentalist vote.

"Talks have been ongoing for a long time and it is pure coincidence," he insisted.

The plan involves setting up some 250 points able to charge an electric vehicle's battery to up to 80 percent capacity within 30 minutes. They are to be located in major cities and along main highways.

"This is a very innovative project. The future will show whether and when electric cars will be in mass use, but this will help us to increase rapidly the number of electric cars in Estonia and to save energy," Economy Minister Juhan Parts told reporters.

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CODA to produce sedan in China

A startup California developer of electric cars said Wednesday its first model will be manufactured in China and go on sale in the United States this year.

CODA Automotive Inc.'s four-door sedan will be produced by a Chinese partner based on one of its models that has been adapted for electric drive and to meet U.S. safety standards, CODA's CEO Philip F. Murtaugh told the Associated Press. He said CODA will produce batteries in China with another partner and supply technology and engineering skills.

CODA plans to begin sales in California this year and expects to sell 10,000 to 14,000 vehicles in its first 12 months, said Murtaugh, a former chairman of General Motors China who joined Santa Monica-based CODA last month.

"I'm very confident we will launch our vehicle in the second half of this year," he said in an interview with a group of reporters.

If it can meet that deadline, CODA could become one of the first companies to sell a Chinese-made car in the United States following announcements by several brands of plans for such sales. CODA has postponed previously announced sales timelines, but Murtaugh said it should be able to stick to its latest schedule.

CODA's plans and the unusual structure of its manufacturing partnership expand on fast-growing ties between auto companies in the United States and China, the world's two biggest vehicle markets.

Global automakers and ambitious startups are racing to develop all-electric and hybrid cars as governments offer tax breaks and subsidies to promote alternative energy in hopes of reducing surging demand for oil.

Nissan Motor Corp.'s Leaf became the first all-electric model on the U.S. market in December. It competes with General Motors Co.' Chevrolet Volt, which uses an electric battery and a small gasoline motor for an additional charge.

A Chinese automaker, BYD Co., began testing its F3DM plug-in hybrid in Los Angeles in December. BYD says it plans to sell its K9 electric bus this year in the United States and start consumer sales in 2012.

CODA says it has raised more than $200 million from investors, including $76 million in its latest round of funding announced in January.

Murtaugh said CODA believes it can compete with bigger, established rivals such as Nissan because its battery technology delivers a longer driving range and more consistent performance at low outdoor temperatures that can sap a charge. He said that could help to overcome a key obstacle to winning widespread public acceptance of electric vehicles -- "range anxiety," or the fear of running out of power.

CODA's battery can carry a 34 kilowatt charge, versus with 24 kilowatts for Nissan's Leaf, with a comparable increase in range, Murtaugh said.

"We won't be perfect but we will certainly be class-leading," he said.

The sedan is based on a vehicle made by Chang'an Hafei Auto, a subsidiary of Chang'an Auto Co. in northeastern China. Batteries are being manufactured in a joint venture with Tianjin LiShen Miles Power Battery Systems Co.

CODA also hopes to sell its propulsion systems to Chinese and other automakers and for use in non-vehicle industrial power storage, Murtaugh said. He said its Chinese joint venture is working on 28 projects to show to 12 to 15 companies, both Chinese and foreign, how its technology might be applied to products made for them.

In California, CODA's sedan will retail for $44,900, or $32,400 after a $7,500 federal tax credit and a $5,000 state government credit, said Forrest Beanum, CODA's vice president for communications.

Major U.S. rental companies Hertz Corp. and Enterprise Rent-a-Car say they will offer CODA electric sedans for rent.

CODA and Chang'an Hafei are discussing whether the Chinese partner might sell a version of the electric sedan in China, Murtaugh said.

The Chinese government has targeted electric cars in industrial development plans that call for China to create its own profitable technologies.

The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said last year Beijing will invest 100 billion yuan ($15 billion) over the next decade to make China a leader in alternative energy vehicles.

In the United States, CODA says it might open a battery factory in Ohio if can obtain $400 million in aid from the U.S. Department of Energy.

Among other electric car makers, Irvine, California-based Fisker Automotive says it will start selling its luxury Karma model in China this year through a local partner.

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Germany not doing enough to promote EVs

From Deutsche Welle: Germany is targeting a fleet of one million electric cars by 2020. But the path forward isn’t clear, and some say the country needs to pick up the pace to protect the future of its auto industry.

Electric cars need perks if the market is ever to take off, says the German Electrical and Electronic Manufacturers' Association (ZVEI).

The association believes the best way to kick-start the electric car market in Germany is to offer incentives like the use of bus lanes to skirt past traffic, free parking in reserved spots and tax breaks.

Although the German government hopes to see 1 million electric vehicles on the country's roads by 2020, it's not doing enough to set an example, according to ZVEI. The association points to China, which aims to put 500,000 electric vehicles on the road in 2012 and the French government's decision to buy 50,000 for its own use.

The race to put electric cars on the road isn't just about innovation and production power, says ZVEI spokesman Andreas Abs; it's also about developing a market for used electric vehicles, which consumers can more readily afford.

France's decision to equip its government fleet with electric vehicles "creates a strong market impulse," Abs told Deutsche Welle. "In five or six years, there will be a veritable market for used electric vehicles."

And China, Abs believes, could eventually pull ahead of Germany when it comes to automotive expertise.

"Anyone with 500,000 electric cars on the market is going to acquire early experience with that technology," he said. "That's why we simply need to do more. The government needs to do more. The automobile industry is a significant part of our industry, and we can't afford to stand by and watch."

But if electric cars are to gain widespread appeal, there have to be obvious advantages to owning one. Among other things, that means an attractive infrastructure to service them and incentives to buy them.

Tax breaks and more

For a start, ZVEI recommends temporarily lifting Germany's 40 percent tax on electricity for consumers charging electric vehicles. The industry group also suggests introducing an interchangeable license plate similar to Switzerland's, which can simply be swapped between a conventional and electric car. Such a plate would reduce insurance and licensing costs as an incentive.

"We believe progress can be made with practical suggestions that don't necessarily cost money right away in the sense of a premium for electric vehicles," Abs said.

While ZVEI doesn't advocate direct subsidies, it does believe the German government should invest more in research, particularly in batteries. The association recommends doubling government funding to 1 billion euros or more.

"Instead of seeing money invested at the back-end with a premium for purchasing, we want to see it invested at the front-end in research and development because that's more difficult for a company that needs to make money on its products," Abs said. "We also need a smart grid, which fills the batteries of an electric car whenever wind turbines are turning. That's particularly appealing because consumers will then know that the electricity they're using to drive with wasn't generated by burning fossil fuels."

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