VentureBeat's GreenBeat, Contributor
Articles
-
Has Tesla completed their first Model S prototype?
A Tesla manufacturing team employee, commenting on Engadget, appears to confirm this, though Tesla has not formally announced anything.
“I...
-
GM Leads Nissan In December Electric Car Sales As Supply Trickles In
Chevy’s electric hybrid vehicle, the Volt, beat out the cheaper Nissan Leaf in electric car sales in the last month of 2010 as each manufacturer struggled to keep up with demand for their newest rides, the Associated Press reported today. The Volt went into production in mid-November and hit...
VentureBeat's GreenBeat -
ActaCell Nabs $3 Million For Cheaper, Better Hybrid Batteries
Recently, we wrote about the move in the private sector to use electric and hybrid delivery trucks. Companies like FedEx and Frito Lay are tapping into benefits of greener cars — even ahead of the broader consumer market because they’re a hedge against volatile diesel prices and can pay...
VentureBeat's GreenBeat -
Will Trucks And Buses Beat Cars In The Electric Race?
Right now, six companies are vying to win a contract that would provide 100 electric vehicles to the government’s General Administration services 214,000-strong fleet. One of them is Ford; the other, a relative newcomer called Smith Electric. But the government isn’t looking for...
VentureBeat's GreenBeat -
Tesla Motors Stock Drops 16 Percent, Analysts Pile On Worries
As VentureBeat suggested on Thursday, the entry of new shares onto the market today has caused Tesla’s stock to drop. The stock is trading down 16 percent today now that the 180-day post-IPO lockup period has ended and insiders are free to sell their shares. The stock is trading at $25.30...
VentureBeat's GreenBeat -
Will Charging Infrastructure Be Speed Bump For Electric Cars?
This year — and next — will be a busy one for arrival of electric cars. The Ford Focus Electric and Coda’s sedan are slated for launch by 2011. The Nissan Leaf is slowly making its way to buyers in the U.S. and Europe, the Wheego Whip and LiFe are on sale in New York, and the...
VentureBeat's GreenBeat -
In one particularly hilarious scene in the TV show Weeds, Mary-Louise Parker’s soccer mom/drug dealer character inspires a scary drug lord to buy several Toyota Priuses after he successfully...
-
And We're Off! Electric Cars Are Here; Now They Need a Charge
It’s official: Electric cars for the mass consumer crowd have arrived. The first all-electric Nissan Leaf was sold last week to a man in California, and more are trickling in. And the first Chevrolet Volts (pictured) — GM’s model that can go up to 50 miles on battery power before...
VentureBeat's GreenBeat -
Hydrogen Refueling Ramps Up In Norway
A new hydrogen refueling station supplied by the Danish company H2 Logic will be installed just outside Oslo, Norway in summer 2011 as part of Norway’s “hydrogen highway“. Together with another planned Oslo hydrogen station in 2011, this means Norway will have one of the...
VentureBeat's GreenBeat -
Your iPhone Can Charge Wirelessly—How About Your Electric Car?
Psh. Plugs. They’re, like, so 2008. There’s been a surge of attention over the last year towards products that that can charge your smartphone wirelessly, like the devices PowerMat makes. Just set it down on the charging mat and let your phone juice up. But according to a new report...
VentureBeat's GreenBeat -
Why Texas May Be A Better Electric-Car State Than California
When power plant heavyweight NRG Energy announced yesterday that it would invest $10 million in the rollout of the nation’s first privately-finance electric vehicle charging network it also revealed that the city it would debut in would be … Houston, Texas. Um, what? Houston (pictured)...
VentureBeat's GreenBeat -
Why Startup Coda Thinks It Can Compete Against Big Auto
I just spoke to electric car startup Coda’s interim CEO Steven “Mac” Heller, who is stepping in since former chief executive Kevin Czinger stepped down. Heller talked to us from Los Angeles Auto Show, where Coda is showing off its all-electric sedan — and where automotive...
VentureBeat's GreenBeat -
Uh-oh, Nissan. There’s been word a-brewing on car forums for that the carmaker is experiencing delays in delivering the much-anticipated all-electric Leaf, which is slated to start arriving...
-
Tesla Shows Open Road To More Losses In Q3
Tesla has announced its third quarter results. They show that revenues are down 31 percent from a year ago and that the car maker is losing nearly eight times as much money compared to the previous year. This quarter, Tesla lost $34.9 million, up 7.6 times from the $4.6 million from a year earlier...
VentureBeat's GreenBeat -
GM Exec: Chill, Volt Electric Cars Won’t Bring Down The Grid
NOTE: Your faithful editor, John Voelcker, moderated this panel at VentureBeat's GreenBeat 2010 conference. As electric cars move towards the smart grid, there’s been a lot of worry about the cars overstraining the grid. But at least for now, GM and PG&E are united on the answer: Not a...
VentureBeat's GreenBeat -
On Heels of SF Giants Win, CA Prop 23 Notches Another Victory Over Texas
Proposition 23 was defeated last night, putting an end to a much ballyhooed piece of cleantech-stopping legislation that was also causing some qualms in the venture capital community. The proposal would have halted California’s AB 32 law, which requires the state to roll back greenhouse...
VentureBeat's GreenBeat -
Chevy’s Volt Drives Well, But Will People Change Their Habits For It?
I took a short test drive yesterday in the Chevrolet Volt, GM’s range-extended vehicle that can go 25 to 50 miles on battery power before switching over to gas. (Note: we’ll have videos up soon, so check back in this space.) The Volt will go into production in mid-November and hit...
VentureBeat's GreenBeat -
Tesla Gears Up $42 Million Fremont Factory For Model S
Tesla has officially completed its $42 million acquisition of the former NUMMI factory, a joint venture between Toyota and General Motors that was shut down in April due to the recession. The New United Motor Manufacturing Inc. facilities in Fremont, Calif. spans 5.5 million square feet and will...
VentureBeat's GreenBeat -
Despite the hype and the near-ubiquity of the Toyota Prius (pictured), most Americans remain leery of buying alternative-fuel vehicles. That’s probably because they don’t have the basic...
-
Venture Capitalist Khosla Sour on Electric Cars at Disrupt Green Panel
Vinod Khosla, dynamic founder of Khosla Ventures and Kevin Skillern, managing director of GE energy financial services, both just spoke on the “GreenTech Gurus” panel at TechCrunch Disrupt. Here are some highlights of the discussion. On investment in cleantech: Khosla (pictured, above)...
VentureBeat's GreenBeat -
GM, Nissan, Tesla Focus On How To Recycle Used Electric-Car Batteries
Electric cars may be coming out in force come December, but the spotlight is now on how their batteries will be resold and recycled several years down the road. There’s been a recent spate of announcements from Nissan, General Motors and Tesla on this topic. All three companies are looking...
VentureBeat's GreenBeat -
VentureBeat GreenBeat Tests 2012 Ford Focus Electric Prototype
Ford announced today that it will partner with Texas utility giant Oncor to prepare the northern region of the state for electric vehicles (EVs). The collaboration will range from consumer education to working behind-the-scenes to gather data and prepare the grid for EVs. The automaker announced a...
VentureBeat's GreenBeat -
DEMO: With MicroFueler, One Man's Trash Is His Gas Tank's Treasure
E-Fuel is one of 70 companies chosen by VentureBeat to launch at the DEMO Fall 2010 event taking place this week in Silicon Valley. After our selection, the companies pay a fee to present. Our coverage of them remains objective. In the renewable energy sector, customers face a variety of options...
VentureBeat's GreenBeat -
Car Charging Station-Maker Coulomb Raises $15 Million to Expand Network
Coulomb Technologies, a leader in roadside charging stations and infrastructure, announced a $15 million third round of funding, which it will use to further develop its network of electric vehicle charging stations. The company has inked partnerships with Leviton and Siemens, which will add their...
VentureBeat's GreenBeat