Transportation

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Hybrid, Legislation and Policy, USA, Fisker

As we get ready for a Congressional hearing later today, news of money that Fisker Automotive owes to the US government is on the mind of regulators and the public. Therefore, the US Department of Energy has announced that it did recently collect $21 million from the struggling automaker. The DOE says that the $21 million was paid back April 11. The company's first repayment, of $10 million out of the roughly $192 million that the company took (it was originally granted a $529 million loan but never took all of the money), was due Monday but the company did not send that check. DOE spokeswoman Aoife McCarthy said in a statement that the agency is "taking strong and appropriate action on behalf of taxpayers," and that the $21 million came from a reserve account. Whether the money covers the payment due is not clear.

Today, the ever-positive-in-the-face-of-trouble co-founder Hekrik Fisker (since resigned), company CEO Tony Posawatz (maybe; reports differ) and COO Bernhard Koehler will be questioned by Republican Darrell Issa's (R-CA) Government Reform and Oversight Committee. Word is that Henrik will say the company could "survive and move forward if it can secure financial and strategic resources, to build on its achievements so far" and that Fisker's problems are the result of "a confluence of events," which sounds like we could be in for some testy testimony.

It's pretty clear Issa has got a negative attitude about the company, since the hearing's official title is: "Green Energy Oversight: Examining the Department of Energy's Bad Bet on Fisker Automotive." We'll have more later today.

Fisker execs will be questioned today over DOE loan, repayments originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Wed, 24 Apr 2013 08:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Tesla Motors

Tesla Motors shares hit a record high Tuesday morning, reaching almost $53 a share in NASDAQ trading before leveling off slightly to about $51 as of late this afternoon Eastern time. Tesla touched $52.92 shortly after the markets opened on Tuesday. Shares for the company, which went public at $17 a share in June 2010, have jumped more than 50 percent during the past year.

The California-based maker of the all-electric Model S said earlier this month that Q1 was its first ever quarter in the black, noting that it beat sales targets. That news followed up Tesla chief Elon Musk's proclamation that it would pay back its US Department Energy loan in roughly half of the ten-year timeframe previously set. Musk has been vocal and optimistic about his company's future, which lead to an excited Tweet about an upcoming announcement, a Tweet that might get him in trouble with the SEC.

Musk isn't the only one who sees good things in Tesla's future. Last week, Time Magazine named Musk one of the 100 most influential people in the world. On Monday, Seeking Alpha went as far as to say Tesla shares could hit $144 in the "near mid term," especially as short sellers who expected the stock to fall are forced to cover their losses. Motley Fool took a more measured approach, saying that factors such as Tesla's cash position, its ability to sell cars to those other than early adopters and the prospect of increased EV competition from larger automakers will determine whether the stock surge is justified.

Tesla stock reaches record high, brushes $53 originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Tue, 23 Apr 2013 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Emerging Technologies, EV/Plug-in, Transportation Alternatives, Asia

Tuk-tuks are the three-wheeled passenger vehicles commonly used in Asia, and they're often noisy and most-certainly-not-emissions-free. To counter the current state, Japanese start-up company Terra Motors has launched an electric tuk-tuk and thinks its electric tricycle will be a cost competitive taxi in Asia.

The company plans to build the car in the Philippines and start selling it later this year for about $6,300. It can go about 31 miles on a two-hour charge, which could propose a bit of a limitation for all-day taxi use. This three-wheeler ties into a national program in the Philippines to replace 100,000 gas-powered tuk-tuks with more efficient, cost-effective EVs by 2016.

Drivers can acquire the Terra tuk-tuk on a lease-to-own basis. The idea is to save drivers money by offering lower fuel costs while reducing air pollution in densely populated urban areas. The challenge is that drivers can buy a gas-powered tuk-tuk for somewhere between $1,000 and $1,500, and those don't have a 31-mile range limitation. Still, plans call for the company to expand the business to the broader Asian market while continuing to work on hitting the right price point, according to Terra Motors director of business development Tetsuya Ohashi.

Terra Motors is counting on consumers enjoying the space-age design and ample interior seating. Investors such as former top executives at Apple Japan, Google Japan, Sony and Compaq have been impressed by Terra's plans, despite a small number of Chinese companies also marketing electric tuk-tuks. Of all the e-tuk-tuk builders, Terra is considered the most ambitious and you can see a TV news report on the company's six-seat taxi video below.

Continue reading Space-age electric tuk-tuk ready for taxi passengers in Philippines

Space-age electric tuk-tuk ready for taxi passengers in Philippines originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Tue, 23 Apr 2013 17:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Concept Cars, Videos, Misc. Auto Shows, Motorcycle, Electric

TUM Create, a section of the Technical University of Munich, Germany, that has more than 100 technical types working on future solutions to mobility, worked with Singapore's Nanyang Technical University to come up with the Voi multipurpose electric scooter. The Voi - from the Vietnamese word for elephant - puts a rider behind an enclosed passenger cell that keeps proceedings narrow and can keep one of the occupants dry.

What's more, that front cell can be swapped for other modules like an open seat, a cargo box or a mobile kitchen. With the aim of being as convenient and affordable as a scooter and as comfortable as a car, the Voi can get up to 45 kilometers per hour (28 miles per hour) and has an 80 kilometer range (50 miles). A video explaining the project can be found below.

Revealed at the Taiwan International Electric Vehicle Show (EV Taiwan) this month, you can watch it being built and taken for a spin in the video below, and check out the press release below that.

Continue reading Voi scooter taxi offers options for commuters in mega cites

Voi scooter taxi offers options for commuters in mega cites originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 23 Apr 2013 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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