What’s Missing in the Detroit Electric JV with Proton Holdings of Malaysia
It it really interesting to see the latest development between Detroit Electric JV with Proton. I am proud to see our local car company is taking the initial step to pursue the concept of electric car for the masses.
The current trend is in [tag-tec]hybrid electric cars[/tag-tec]. Most other car manufacturers such as Toyota, Honda, Nissan etc are developing and pushing hard on hybrid technology.
I am sure they have a pure electric car (PEC) model in the R&D ready for the next launching phase. That is a wise move because the world has been addicted to fossil fuel for far too long. It will be a matter of time before we shift to a cleaner form of energy for our vehicles.
Are we ready for pure electric cars on the road? The answer is, No! There is one key component still missing in the equation. It is the recharging infrastructure.
Driving a PEC is very different from driving a car driven by an [tag-tec]internal combustion engine[/tag-tec] (ICE). If you run out of gasoline, a gas station is just around the corner for you to fuel up.
If your PEC runs out of electric power in the batteries, you will not be able to find a power outlet to recharge. No doubt modern electric car can recharge in a few hours, but will you be able to find a shop that will allow you to use their electric power?
How would you pay for the power that you consumed?
Therefore, the missing component in the Detroit Electric JV with Proton is the network of charging stations. They can mass produce all the PEC, but without a readily available power outlets to recharge the battery unit, the vehicle is simply not practical.
I have a feeling company such as Better Place will be entering into the picture in the near future.
Better Place already has plan to setup thousands of electric charging station in Australia and many other countries. Their JV with Nissan makes more economic sense.