The past week has probably been one the biggest weeks in the alt car industry since General Motors cancelled the EV1. Here are the headlines that were:
Boston-Power Gets $55M More to Produce Lithium-Ion Batteries
The company is part of a group that wants to revitalize the U.S. battery industry. Step one: Build factories in Asia.
Ultracapacitors: An Inevitable Component Inside Electric Cars?
Graphene Energy, a Quercus startup, says that it might be able to come up with a powerful ultracapacitor for cars in the relatively near future.
With General Motors Snub, Is A123 Systems on the Ropes?
The once-hot battery maker lost a bid with General Motors, and is seeing a contract with Think dwindle. Can a startup with over 1,700 employees make it in tough times?
Toyota to Build All-Electric Car by 2012
Toyota promises to have a compact "urban commuter" car that runs entirely on elect
ricity for sale by 2012. The automaker will also speed up the rollout of plug-in electric Prius models powered by lithium-ion batteries, and build a Lexus hybrid.
The Transmission of Tomorrrow Gets $25M
Wind turbines, cars, bikes and other things with motors can make jumps in efficiency by swapping out gears for planetary transmission, says Fallbrook Technologies.
Think Gets $5.7M to Stay Alive – For a Little While
Norwegian electric carmaker Think is getting about 40 million crowns ($5.7 million) to try to save itself from bankruptcy.
Tesla to Build Battery Pack for Daimler's Smart Car
Tesla will build the components for 1,000 all-electric Smart cars from Daimler within two years.
GreenFuel Technologies Lays Off Half Its Staff
GreenFuel Technologies Corp., one of the oldest algae-to-biofuel startups that seemed to be on the upswing recently after some high-profile setbacks, reportedly laid off 19 people, nearly half its staff, on Monday.
Tesla Spiffs Up Roadster; Chrysler Touts All-Electric Sports Car
Tesla's new Roadster Sport outperforms the Roadster, while Chrysler may be aiming for a broader market with the Circuit EV.
Toyota Comes Clean on Solar Panels, Lithium-Ion Batteries
Toyota at the North American International Auto Show both cleared up an errant rumor and confirmed something of a reversal of earlier policies.
Showing Off Green Cars Amid Economic Gloom
Most major automakers and some startups, such as Fisker and Tesla, will display hybrid and all-electric models at the upcoming Detroit auto show. Meanwhile, hybrid car sales have plummeted.