Posts Tagged ‘Tesla’

Desperation or long-term planning? Daimler AG acquires 10 per cent of Tesla

Tuesday, May 19th, 2009

The subject line speaks for itself. Perhaps this will spark Ford and GM to take similar equity stakes in other emerging EV companies. Now, some may point out that the big car companies also had/have stakes in fuel-cell companies (i.e. remember Ballard). But this is different. Tesla has a car and is selling it today. It’s expensive, but it already has plans to sell its less flashy sedan in the coming year.

Here are a few places to read about the news:

Actual announcement here. Earth2Tech coverage here. CNET coverage here. And AP/CP coverage here.

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Fisker’s Karma to be powered by Canadian battery system

Thursday, March 12th, 2009

There’s a reason why Vancouver-based Advanced Lithium Power Inc. has a message on the home page of its Web site that reads, “ALP is expanding! Click here for career opportunities.”

As you’ll read in this Los Angeles Times blog entry, Fisker Automotive of Irvine, Calif., is using lithium-ion battery packs from Advanced Lithium to power its highly anticipated Karma plug-in hybrid. The Karma, at a cost of about $88,000 (U.S.), has Tesla-like looks but costs about $20,000 less. That’s partly because, as a hybrid (that is, like the GM Volt is has a gas-powered range extender that’s used to charge the battery while driving), its battery pack is less than half the size of the Tesla pack. First deliveries of the Karma are expected in spring 2010. About 1,300 have already been preordered.

Fisker, according to the LA Times piece, will make a “sizable” cash investment in Advanced Lithium and will get two seats on the Canadian company’s board.

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Posted in electric vehicles | 4 Comments »