Electric cars have long been regarded as an excellent solution to cut greenhouse gases. But a major problem plaguing the electric car movement has been where to plug in. Installing a series of charging points to serve battery-powered cars is half the battle in getting gas-powered cars off the roads. Most electric cars are only able to drive 60 to 100 miles on a single charge. An extensive network is needed to service these vehicles, as well as battery-swapping stations where drivers can exchange a flat battery with a charged one. And at present, such a network does not exist.

Recently, steps were taken to change all that. The New York Times has reported on Better Place, a start-up that just received a $350 million dollar venture capital investment towards developing “vast networks” of charge spots to power electric cars. Experts are calling this investment the key financial validation that the electric car industry needed to move ahead. With a combined market value of $1.25 billion, Better Places and its CEO Shai Agassi report a $125 million investment from HSBC Holdings, as well as $225 million from Morgan Stanley Investment Management, Lazard Asset Management and other investors.

The huge boost of cash for Better Place’s network of charging stations could help convince other investors that electric vehicles are sound investment – as there will now be an infrastructure on the road to support long-distance driving. The company is scheduled to make its commercial debut in 2011 in Israel and Denmark.

According to the plan proposed by Better Place, buyers would purchase electric vehicles from automakers but get their batteries from Better Place. Hence, they would pay a fee according to the distance they drive. There would be thousands of conventional charge points. Further, as the NY Times reports, there would also be switching stations where you could change a battery quicker than you fill a tank of gas.

All of the major car manufacturers are debuting electric cars as part of their upcoming releases. But “only Renault has publicly endorsed Better Place’s plan, agreeing to supply cars with easy-to-swap batteries and working closely with the company to reach its 2011 commercial debut.” Renault Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn recently presented four electric cars to the public that will go on sale in 2011 or 2012. At present, plans are to sell at least 100,000 electric cars in Israel and Denmark by 2016. Experts hope that the plans for electric cars and their Better Place network will set up a blueprint for the rest of the world to follow accordingly.

The Renault-Nissan Leaf Car
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