Better Place Australia Secures Funding For Canberra Electric Vehicle Charging Network

Okay, so this electric idea is great. But first of all, where does this electricity come from? another fossil fuel plant?
and secondly, getting this electricity to your car must cost you something, all I've seen are pictures of people being so happy to fill there car with electricity. What i wanna know is how much it costs to get this electricity.

and what about the low life louts that are going to play havoc with these power outlets and cables while you recharge your car

i don't think it will work out any cheaper by buying both petrol and power

(1) Additional green power for electric cars has to be provided first, before EVs are rolled out. So I would like to know how many windfarms are being built where at which power rating for how many electric cars. If this is not done we swap oil dependency with coal dependency - not good for our climate. The last thing we want to have is more CO2 emissions from millions of electric cars.
(2) It should also be shown whether our local grids and transformers can handle the re-charging in hot summer nights when all aircons are on
(3) What is also needed is some serious modeling how many EVs there can be on the road by, say, 2020, considering the limitations under (1) and (2)
(4) The big question is: can EVs compensate for steep oil production declines in the next 10 years to be able to maintain our car culture. If not we better stop thinking about building yet more freeways.

I think your project will be a great success and wonder how I, as a small investor, may get shares in your company?

A positive story amongst the gloom and doom. Congratulations on a great idea and is their opportunities for small investors.

I am sceptical about the benefits of using electric cars recharged by coal power stations. The benefits of using electric cars could not possible be a benefit (i.e. savings of carbon put versus cost of carbon putput from coal fired power). My idea would be to arm parking stations with much greener power (no not solar and not wind) too charge up electric cars. The technology exists. I dont believe if we put 2 million vehicles on the road in the next 5 years that our existing power base could handle that. Remember. Electricity from a coal power station is only at max 20% efficient. So what they put in at one end been coal ends up at the charging end as only 20% of the original power capability of the coal. What about power generation at the recharge end where 60-70% of the enegy is available for recharging without 60% of the carbon output and in addition where the recharge station is a carpark associated with a shopping centre the heat generated goes to provide hot water for the shopping centre. In addition the excess power is sent back into the grid. Comments please ?

The general public and our politicians will have to get with reality and start building Nuclear power stations as they have in France and most of the progressive countries, China and Japan are going Nuclear and guess who will be supplying them with the fuel? Australia has about 75% of the worlds' uranium and no nuclear power stations so while we sit on our hands with our head up our proverbial the rest of the world will swap over to electic vehicles.
Clean , efficient , more powerful and much quicker than any gas guzzler. Cheaper to build and far less maintainence.
The average person does not realise that electric motors power the trains hauling coal to the power stations and they have been doing this for 50yrs. The technology is not new: electric motors have much more power than the equivalent weight of internal combustion motors and enormous torque. Zero to 100kmh in about 3 secs if you desire but I suggest that this is too quick. The electric train in Japan can exceed 400kmh and my cousin travelled on the French version at 340kmh while noting that cars travelling near 200kmh on an adjacent highway appeared to be going backwards, so don't think electric propulsion is slow and has no power.These are popular misconceptions!
Swapping batteries is the answer to the range problem and I suggest this would be quicker than filling your tank!
The Japanese have nearly got it right, but there is a simpler way of doing it and much quicker.I worked this out about 20 yrs ago. Just imagine ,no gearbox,no tailshaft,no exhaust system,no differential, all gone just motors in each wheel if you desire, some electronics and a quick change battery that you dont own or maintain as its rented just like a gas bottle. Of course city commuters could get by by charging up every second or third day on off peak power at home. Also electric cars could be easily controlled by central traffic computers so eliminating traffic jams.
Battery technology will improve all the time just as computers have so dont be negative about that!
I could probably go on but you get the picture; internal combustion has served us well but technology moves relentlessly forward and the fundemental duo of nuclear energy and magnetic propulsion is about to herald a new age . Bring it on ,it will be quiet efficient and sophisticated at last!