In a conversation with "Globes" this morning, Israel Corporation (TASE: ILCO) CEO Gilad Nir said that the electric cars of Better Place LLC were on the fast track to Israel's highways. He made the comment following the publication of Israel Corp's financial report for the third quarter.
"Better Place is an investment in activity that is groundbreaking and will change consumer behavior. It is not a trivial activity, and we're investing in it in the belief that we've identified a trend, just we spotted other trends much sooner than others," Gilad said.
"Globes": This cow called Better Place has meanwhile eaten a lot of grass. When will you start to milk it?
Gilad: "If we put your cynicism aside for a moment and discuss the issue seriously, on the basis of your allegory, in 2006 when we just began to talk about electric cars, we looked more like a Mad Cow. Today, every leading global carmaker has announced the production of electric cars. We know that the declared government policy in the world's largest vehicle market - China - is for all cars to have electric motors within the coming decades. We therefore think we identified the right trend. In 2006, people didn’t understand why we invested in partnership with a carmaker in China, which at the time lagged behind the US and Europe. Today, China is already the world's largest car market."
What does that say about your target date?
"I believe that next year in Israel, in 2011, customers begin a wide test, and by 2012 we'll begin to see full commercial activity for all intents and purposes."
Better Place picked up the pace of its R&D during the third quarter, as well as preparations for the deployment of its electric car venture in Israel and Denmark. As a result, the company posted a net loss of $32 million for the quarter.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on November 25, 2010
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