Israel Corporation (TASE: ILCO) on Friday injected an additional $21 million into Better Place LLC. The sum is Israel Corp.'s share, based its proportional holding in the company, of a general capital injection decided on by Better Place's board of directors.
Israel Corp. has already invested $63.6 million into Better Place, and it is due to invest $100 million altogether.
At the 2009 President's Conference last month, Better Place CEO Shai Agassi said that a 6-12 month pilot of the company's electric car venture would begin in the second half of 2010. Marketing of the electric cars will begin by the end of 2011. This is several months later than forecast until now, apparently due to delays at the car manufacturer, Renault SA (Euronext: RNO). However, anyone expecting to see an electric outside their home will have to wait. Agassi said that initial deliveries will be to 50 large car fleets which registered in advance for the company's electric car conversion program.
Earlier this month, in a report on electric cars, Deutsche Bank stated that Better Place will have to spend $1.1 billion over the next six years to buy the batteries and build the battery replacement centers and recharging points for its electric car venture in Israel alone.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on November 22, 2009
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