leh

Oil Will Only Fall So Far

<<russian invasion of georgia was timed to occur while world attention is diverted to china olympics.>>

I like how Bush refused to cut short his little China vacation and let the real President, Cheney, do the saber-rattling back home--if that's what you call the pathetic mews out of Washington. Disengaged moron.

Black Gold or Yellow Gold?

I'm completely in agreement with Fitz here and deeply regret we've pissed away 8 critical (pivotal years) under Boy George and his merry band of incompetents. In an earlier age they would be tarred and feathered and run out of town--or much worse. Today they'll retire to various think tanks and make millions on the speaking circuit.

But I'm getting off point. Creative initiatives like Agassi's Project Better Place are precisely what's needed to start weaning ourselves off oil, and the fact that Renault/Nissan's Carlos Ghosn is 100% behind it with Israel as first adopter says to me it has a very good chance of succeeding and becoming a model for the rest of the planet.

I have been following lithium battery development for several years now and we are VERY close (2-3 years) to seeing mass production of deep, powerful (and safe) 10-year battery packs that will enable PHEVs to go 30-50 miles per charge before the gasser kicks in. This is a game changer for sure as consumers will flock to these cars if the price is right. Interestingly, NIMH battery tech is far from dead, and Honda may well be the first automaker to hit the sweet spot price-wise with its upcoming economy hybrid, which will run on this older, more proven battery tech. Look for PHEVs to go with lithium and non-plug-in hybrids to stay with the nickel batteries. Toyota just announced it is investing close to a billion dollars in battery plants to build both with its partner, Panasonic EV.

P.S. Historically ironic trivia question of the day (I promise it is VERY on topic): What product line did GM's now on-the-block Hummer brand replace on the factory lines in the mid-90's?

Yup, the EV1 electric cars, which were abandoned, with existing models gathered and crushed by the company. See "Who Killed the Electric Car" for all the stomach-churning details.

Extra credit follow-up question: What was Toyota's president's pet project at the same time (mid-1990's), something he believed in so strongly (even with oil at $10-20/barrel) that he put the company into near crisis mode to get it produced within two years?

Yup, the Prius, which just passed the millionth unit sold mark, and which has cemented Toyota's lead in hybrid auto technology. There is no mystery or magic to their ongoing grab of market share and supremacy in their sector, only smart, committed, and prescient business acumen, something Detroit has shown a consistent lack of. If you want to get really depressed about this company, Google "GM hybrid battery recall" to read about their latest debacle, namely 9,000 leaky NIMH Cobasys battery packs in the Saturn Vue mild hybrid.
(Toyota's Prius packs have been nearly perfect, with many going 200,000 miles on the original.)