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Masdar City personal rapid transit designer talks transport
The zero-carbon and zero-waste Masdar City currently under construction in Abu Dhabi will also be car-free, so how will one get about the one-mile square town of 50,000? If you want to travel on the surface you can walk, bicycle or ride a Segway but if it's snowing too hot to travel outside, you will also have the option of venturing underground and ride to your destination in a personal transit vehicle (PRT). These electrically-powered, centrally-controlled pods can carry four to six people and trundle along at speeds of up to 25 mph, ... Read more →
OPEC doing its part for economy, urges U.S. to do same Domenick Yoney
After a meeting which saw a decision by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to leave current production levels in place rather than cutting them to maintain higher prices, a ...
Better Place battery swapping plan comes under fire Domenick Yoney
Although many share the vision of ubiquitous infrastructure to support future fleets of electric vehicles, the concept of battery swapping, frequently championed by Better Place, doesn't seem to have ...
Chery electric car venture with Israel Corp. speeds up, slims down Domenick Yoney
Less than two weeks after Chery unveiled its first electric car (above) comes news that the joint venture the Chinese car maker has with Israel Corporation Ltd. is set to speed up. The holding ...
Better Place announces 19 "Vision Partners" (aka early buyers) in Israel Sebastian Blanco
Click on the image above for a gallery of Better Place images "Vision Partner" sure has a nice ring to it. So positive, so optimistic, and so perfect a name for Better Place's new partners in ...
More middle-east news
Using biofuels might be a sin, says Muslim cleric 4 months ago on AutoblogGreen
I had no idea what would pop up when I typed in "ethanol sin" into the search box over at Flickr. Turns out, you get the image above, which was created for the Pope's visit to the U.S. back in early 2008. It's a good reminder that the debate over biofuels has donned religious clothing before. ...
Will Israeli military be a Better Place? 4 months ago on AutoblogGreen
Better Place may be getting a helpful boost as the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) are considering installing the company's infrastructure to charge future electric jeeps and troop carriers, as well as civilian cars. Better Place has close ties with the Jewish state and the CEO of its Israeli chapter, ...
Iran's Samand Soren boasts the world's most powerful natural-gas car engine 4 months ago on AutoblogGreen
Iran's most important car manufacturer, Iran Khodro, has announced they are developing the world's most powerful natural gas engine. The engine is installed in the marque's latest model, the Samand Soren (a car which can trace its roots to the Peugeot 405). Although this claim should be checked ...
Tesla vs camels: Showdown in the desert 5 months ago on AutoblogGreen
The tight grip that camels have traditionally held on oil-free driving in the sandy lands of the United Arab Emirates may be loosening. Although those iconic ships-of-the-desert have long held sway for those who did not want to be beholden to oil companies, vehicles from Tesla Motors may soon begin ...
Car-free Masdar City plans still moving forward 5 months ago on AutoblogGreen
Masdar, that "zero carbon, zero waste, car-free city" we first wrote about back in 2007 has been moving forward in Abu Dhabi. 100 sudents and faculty should be living in the early stages of development by the fall. Last November, the forces that be awarded Mustang Engineering (from Houston, Texas) ...
Oz editorial: hurt the Taliban by investing in biofuels 5 months ago on AutoblogGreen
Photo of Afghanistan by Carl Montgomery. Licensed under Creative Commons license 2.0. Afghanistan is a tricky place for outside powers. Beginning 800 years ago, outside forces have invaded, occupied and in other ways tried to influence the land and people there. Today, American and NATO military ...
Better Place: more partnerships in Japan; electric car parking lot opens in Israel 6 months ago on AutoblogGreen
A few bits of news from the Better Place electric vehicle juggernaut today. One, Israel's first electric parking lot has opened at Cinema City in Pi-Glilot. Pictured above is Better Place Israel CEO Moshe Kaplinsky with one of the Renault vehicles plugged into the station. So, how does the Better ...
Emirates to ban old cars for the sake of the environment? 6 months ago on AutoblogGreen
Described as a measure to improve road security and the environment, the government of the United Arab Emirates has passed a bill which will surely raise a eyebrow: Cars older than 20 years are going to be banned, and used car dealers won't be allowed to sell cars that are more than 10 years old. ...
Michigan governor meets with Shai Agassi and Better Place in Israel 7 months ago on AutoblogGreen
Click to enlarge Michigan's Governor, Jennifer Granholm, is currently on an overseas trip to try and boost Michigan's economy. It's a trip she's cut in half from its scheduled length because of the automaker bailout discussion here in America. Still, while she was in Israel, Granholm took a peek ...
Better Place all-electric Renault delayed? 9 months ago on AutoblogGreen
Bad news for fans of the Better Place plan - maybe. According to a report on an Israeli business website, Renault executives at a conference in Geneva have said that the electric car bound for Israel, to be franchised by Shai Agassi's Better Place, will be delayed by a year. However, the website ...
Dubai public transportation to be all hybrid by 2012 10 months ago on AutoblogGreen
click to enlarge GM has been testing its hybrids as taxis in Dubai since January and the results so far have been so encouraging they feel they may be able to replace the emirates' entire fleet of taxis, government and emergency vehicles by 2012. Despite the heat, sand and humidity on crowded ...
BYD getting Israeli partner to compete with Renault and Better Place 10 months ago on AutoblogGreen
If competition spurs companies to improve the quality of their offerings and the speed with which they innovate, then we may soon expect more from Shai Agassi's Better Place and its partner in Israel, Renault. While BYD already announced they would be selling electric vehicles in Israel earlier ...
BYD to sell EVs in Israel 10 months ago on AutoblogGreen
Chinese automaker BYD has announced that it is going to start selling electric cars in Israel by 2009, as well as European markets in the following years. The planned models are the BYD E6 and a Plug-in Hybrid F6DM, which will benefit from Israel's soon-to-be installed electric charging stations ...
Lamborghini flown from Qatar to London and back... for an oil change 11 months ago on AutoblogGreen
In a virtual slap to the face of eco-friendly drivers worldwide, a wealthy Sheikh went to the trouble of shipping his oddly-hued Lamborghini from Qatar to London and back... for an oil change. That is 3,250 miles each way, or about the total distance likely traveled between oil changes in the first ...
Electric Palestinian Peugeot proves popular, but will it bring peace? 11 months ago on AutoblogGreen
Having the family car converted to run on electricity has become a very popular concept in Palestine. Since we told you about the Peugeot prototype, the two men behind the project, Waseem Khazendar and Fayaz Anan, have heard from over 400 folks willing to throw down the $2,500 they say it would ...
Saudi Arabia to begin pumping on Khurais oil field shortly 1 year ago on AutoblogGreen
Saudi Aramco's core area in Dhahran city The world's insatiable demand for petroleum is about to cause more drilling and pumping in Saudi Arabia, as the country is set to begin setting up shop on the Khurais oil field. A ten-billion dollar investment will be made which is expected to allow the ...
Project Better Place "green smoke and mirrors"? 1 year ago on AutoblogGreen
After lots of initial enthusiasm and many deals done, Project Better Place is starting to attract some critics. The most recent fault-finding flak comes from Karin Kloosterman who suggests that PBP is "green smoke and mirrors." In a piece for the Huffington Post....wait a sec., isn't that a website ...
Palestinian fuel shortage births electric car 1 year ago on AutoblogGreen
It appears it's not only their good friends and neighbors the Israelis who are gaining interest in the whole electric car concept. Faced with an on-going fuel shortage, a pair of Palestinian electrical engineers have put together a battery-powered car that is now the envy of their fellow countrymen ...
Renault's electric car debuts in Tel Aviv 1 year ago on AutoblogGreen
digg_url = 'http://digg.com/hardware/Renault_s_electric_car_debuts_in_Tel_Aviv'; It could be the quickest vehicle to go from concept to a public, drivable prototype in automotive history. As previewed, "Israelis got a first demonstration Sunday of the electric car that developers hope will ...
Shai Agassi to drive Project Better Place prototype on Sunday in Tel Aviv 1 year ago on AutoblogGreen
One of the launching points for Shai Agassi's Project Better Place is in Israel and it looks like the first tangible progress might be demonstrated this weekend. The CEO of PBP is planning to drive a prototype electric car that is being developed at around noon on Sunday at the Fairgrounds and ...
Nissan to trial "sexy" electric cars in London and California by 2010? 1 year ago on AutoblogGreen
Lots of Nissan electric car news today. Shortly after hearing that Nissan intends to be a global leader in affordable electric cars, news comes that the company is looking at a few cities to trial some of their new electric vehicle technology. One such city on the short-list is reportedly London. ...
OPEC: Oil prices could continue to rise 1 year ago on AutoblogGreen
OPEC president Chakib Khelil believes that the already staggering price for a barrel of oil could continue to rise. Citing the low value of the U.S. dollar, Khelil says that investors are likely to continue to place their bets on oil, a necessary commodity. With current prices hovering around $120 ...
The top five upcoming green events, number three: The Great Race 1 year ago on AutoblogGreen
Although The Great Race has been postponed due to the recall of travel permits through China, the show will go on. According to the official website, "Great Race Sports owners, executives and participants are dedicated to honoring the history of this illustrious race." We think that the race, ...
Dubai makes big biodiesel investment in Malaysia 1 year ago on AutoblogGreen
Photo by Soylentgreen23. Licensed under Creative Commons license 2.0. As we noted when Dubai announced a test of GM Hybrids for taxi and limo service, just because the Emirate has a lot of oil doesn't mean it isn't interested in checking out alternatives. News is out today that the Dubai Group has ...
Flameless combustion could generate power with very low emissions 1 year ago on AutoblogGreen
digg_url = 'http://digg.com/environment/Flameless_Combustion_Could_Generate_Power'; Until more eco-friendly alternatives become available, most of us are stuck burning fossil-fuels for our power, whether we're driving or just powering the lights in our homes. With that in mind, researchers from ...
Denmark to launch Project Better Place pilot program 1 year ago on AutoblogGreen
As our faithful readers are aware, we reported last November that the government of Denmark has been talking with Project Better Place about the possibility of setting up an electric car program along with a charging station network. Now comes word of the impending official announcement of the ...
Firms Chosen in Israel to Develop "Better Place" Chargers 1 year ago on AutoblogGreen
Look, more signs that Project Better Place is taking root in Israel. Two companies have been chosen to implement the charging infrastructure designed by Better Place. Aran Research and Development Ltd. and Nekuda DM Ltd will develop and install the first of an intended 500,000 charging sites in ...
India running low on oil, looks to Turkey (and beyond) for help 1 year ago on AutoblogGreen
With India's emergence in recent years as a booming automotive market, the country needs a booming supply of oil to power all the new vehicles. Unfortunately for Indians, they don't have nearly enough domestically-produced oil, so they are forced to import their supplies from other countries. In an ...
Lotus goes to Abu Dhabi on a eco-car business trip, finds Mubadala 1 year ago on AutoblogGreen
Not long ago we posted on Lotus' plans to develop business in Saudi Arabia. Lotus Engineering and Mubadala Development Company have now announced a similar agreement in Abu Dhabi, the capitol of the United Arab Emirates. As in the case of Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi is wondering what to do when they ...
Piaggio to sell electric vans in Israel ... next month! 1 year ago on AutoblogGreen
Piaggio, the scooter maker best known for making Vespa, will be the first to sell electric vehicles in Isreal, in just one month. According to Ha'aretz, the electric vehicles will be Piaggio's Porter brand, small multipurpose vans (MPV) which come in five types, including models with payload ...
Notes from Project Better Place+Renault press conference 1 year ago on AutoblogGreen
Recently, I wrote about the Project Better Place+Renault press conference. Here are some interesting details from the two webcasts titled Press Conference and Media Q&A and linked to from the Project Better Place website. Renault-Nissan CEO, Carlos Ghosn says the cars will have a maximum price ...
