TerraMoto CEO Reports From the Front Lines of the Electric Vehicle “EV” Wars | 3BL Media

(3BLMedia/theCSRfeed) SAN DIEGO – December 2, 2009 – Electrified vehicles are poised to transform the automobile industry. As the CEO of Terramoto Transportation, Quentin Sponselee is more than just knowledgeable about innovations in the car industry. He has invaluable first-hand experience with these new vehicles and sees himself as a “Master Test Driver” on the front line of the electric car wars, an evaluator of new cars he deals with in his sustainability-oriented transportation business. 

Consumers in Southern California are getting a preview of what the EV wars will look like as the Nissan Leaf and Chevy Volt both made recent tours around San Diego to build momentum for their 2010 launches. “Southern California has become a front-line market for the Leaf and Volt,” says Sponselee. “San Diego will play an important role in how these new technology platforms are adopted around the country and it is my responsibility to do more than provide a better service than my competitors. It is also my job to educate the passenger”. Sponselee predicts that as early as December 5th, 2009 General Motors Corp. will announce San Diego as a strategic test market and unveil major plans to recapture market share.
 

In its first year of business, TerraMoto completed 9,414 trips and has become the preferred transportation for San Diego County’s most prestigious hotel and technology companies. As the leading transportation service providing a more sustainable and high quality alternative, Terramoto stands to gain from a clear winner. CEO Sponselee warns though that there are many gaps in consumer education about new vehicles even as the Prius introduces its third generation vehicle prior to introducing plug-in hybrids. “One of the most frequently asked questions we receive from our passengers about the Prius is ‘Do you have to plug it in?’ This is not just asked by San Diegans, but by executives being picked up at San Diego International who are from other parts of the country”, says Sponselee.    

  While a great deal of excitement has been generated about concept cars, Sponselee contends it’s time to move beyond capturing our imagination to harnessing this excitement to sell cars to mainstream consumers. Detroit has struggled with this in the past and Nissan may lose ground as well as they attempt to manufacture electric vehicles in China, the world’s largest car market today. “It’s been reported that Nissan [the Japanese automaker and its Chinese partner Dongfeng Motor Co.] recently signed an agreement to promote electric vehicles in China and study the possibility of opening a production plant in Guangzhou. This is a will be a big mistake as the US leads in infrastructure investment and infrastructure will be built early in San Diego”, says Sponselee . The Nissan Leaf is expected to reach China by 2011, but Nissan has already announced the earlier deployment of up to 1,000 Nissan battery electric vehicles in strategic markets in five US states: Arizona, California, Oregon, Tennessee, and Washington. 

“Nissan’s attempt to penetrate the Chinese EV market will be difficult as the nation has few hybrid and EV owners”, says Sponselee. California is world-renowned for early adoption of innovations like the Prius. A Chinese Economic website reports the US sold 13 million new vehicles last year, 313,486 or 2.4 percent of them hybrids. China, by comparison, sold 9.38 million vehicles last year, but only 2,617, or 2.8 out of 10,000, were hybrids. Sales of the Toyota-made Prius have exceeded 1.25 million globally, but only 3,500 of the sedans have been sold in China since they were introduced in the country three years ago.

  Sponselee foresees the following challenges to growing the market for electric transportation.

  1.        Massive consumer re-education about basic underlying electric propulsion technology and how this will alter their driving habits. “My business operates exclusively on a fleet of hybrid electric vehicles (Prius). While these vehicles have been in the marketplace for several years and I still get questions from passengers about whether they need to be plugged in. My business acts as a subliminal test drive for new technologies and I think car manufacturers would be shocked at the lack of understanding most of my consumers have about electric vehicles.” 

  2.        Cost – There are a lot of new entrants in the electric vehicle market including V-Vehicle, Aptera, and the Chinese company, BYD. “I don’t think GM is planning on the Volt being a loss leader. However, with a sticker price of $40k before rebates they will have more than Toyota and Nissan to contend with. “

  3.        Infrastructure – Based on the questions consumers have had at recent Southern CA green transportation events, concerns about charging technology remain at the forefront. “As an operator of a commercial transportation business, anything that adds additional barriers to adoption, such as having to stop to recharge, affects my ability to deliver superior customer service and ultimately my bottom line.”

  Knowing that the stakes are high is creating intense competition between foreign and domestic manufacturers. Sponselee is looking forward to seeing how this plays out at this week’s LA Car show and wondering if automakers will make strategic partnerships with local companies, including executive-class transportation companies like TerraMoto. The EV Wars have begun and Terramoto Transportation, Inc. is well-positioned to help grow the market for electric vehicles in Southern California. “We are the key to introducing technology and educating the marketplace. Not to mention, we offer the best visibility for this technology in town,” states Sponselee. Would this be a good fit for the Volt?  Would it be better for Nissan, Toyota, or BYD? Only time will tell.

  About TerraMoto: TerraMoto Transportation serves San Diego using the most advanced fleet of environmentally friendly hybrid sedan limousines available. Specializing in airport, point-to-point, and chartered services they provide transportation services for executives, businesses, tourists, and many others. Their mission is to provide the highest quality sedan limousine San Diego airport transportation services using an exclusively ultra low emissions hybrid and CNG fleet. The company offers airport meet and greet and curbside pickup limo service from San Diego International Airport (SAN) as well as Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), John Wayne Airport (SNA), and Long Beach Airport (LGB). 

  Main Contact: Yeves Perez, (c) 619. 804.1720
Email. yeves@terramoto.net
http://www.terramoto.net
http://twitter.com/Terramotonet

Qnuru Aquila Solar Light Featured in Wired Magazine’s Online Holiday Store

Wired Magazine will feature Qnuru’s Aquila Solar light alongside a wide range of tech gadgets, games and green products in its fifth annual online store. Featured in the green living section, the Aquila is a solar powered pole lamp with 3 petals placed at varying heights to form a tree-like canopy. Solar cells are positioned on the top of each petal beneath a clear high-impact acrylic lens. LEDs are mounted on the underside onto a highly reflective luminaire behind a translucent acrylic lens that produces warm white light, cool white light or a combination of warm-cool illumination.

 

The Aquila integrates LED lighting devices, solar power technology and advanced power management and control systems in a beautiful exterior lighting fixture. By incorporating ultra high-efficiency LED light engines,the Aquila consumes less than 30 watts of power.

Qnuru, a brand of Visible Light Solar Technologies, is a new solar lighting product line that integrates sophisticated, contemporary lighting design with advanced solar technologies and control systems to create an unparalleled lighting experience for exterior commercial and residential installations.  The solar landscape lighting is designed with natural materials, features a proprietary, custom designed power control system, and is completely untethered to the power grid.  For more information about the Aquila solar/LED light fixture, visit http://www.qnuru.com

To visit the product in the Wired store, visit http://www.wired.com/promo/wiredstore/#menuName=Brand&menuOptionID=359&productID=51

ABOUT VISIBLE LIGHT SOLAR
Based in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Visible Light Solar Technologies (www.visiblelightsolar.com) is an intelligent LED and solar lighting technology company.  Visible Light Solar provides businesses, municipalities and educational facilities with retrofit as well as new solar/LED lighting solutions that save money, reduce maintenance costs, and are environmentally sustainable. Visible Light Solar is a member of the Illuminating Engineering Society, US Green Building Council and the International Dark-Sky Association. The company is backed by the venture accelerator firm, Noribachi (www.noribachi.com).

via 3blmedia.com

GE Transportation and CSR Qishuyan Finalize Locomotive Diesel Engine Joint Venture

GE Transportation announced today the formation of a joint venture company with CSR Qishuyan Locomotive Co., Ltd., a unit of China South Locomotive and Rolling Stock Corporation Limited (CSR), to develop, build and service GE’s Evolution® Series locomotive diesel engines in China.  The announcement as made as part of “GE’s Clean Technology Week in China” activities.The joint venture is scheduled to launch operations at the end of 2011, including the assembly, testing and overhaul of engine components such as power assemblies and turbochargers in China.  During the second phase, starting in 2013 engines as well as components will be assembled, tested and overhauled.

“This new joint venture directly aligns with GE’s strategic direction to design, manufacture and service product within the region or country in which they are used,” said Tim Schweikert, President of GE Transportation China.  “GE will continue to supply key engine components for the final engine assembly such as turbocharger and fuel injection kits.  Providing these key components also helps sustain approximately 120 U.S. manufacturing jobs.”

In October 2005, GE Transportation marked the formal beginning of its partnership with CSR Qishuyan by signing a strategic contract with China’s Ministry of Railways to supply 300, 6,250-horsepower Evolution Series HXN5 China Mainline Locomotives.  Today more than 100 of these Evolution Series China Mainline Locomotives already have been produced by CSR Qishuyan and placed in revenue service by the Ministry of Railways.

There is significant opportunity for locomotive modernization in China.  CSR produced more than half of the more than 12,000 diesel locomotives currently in service.  Most diesel locomotives in China would benefit from advanced fuel-savings and emissions- reducing technologies.  The Evolution Series locomotive diesel engines are GE’s most fuel-efficient and low emission diesel engines to-date and, thereby, support China’s green initiatives.  The Evolution Series Locomotive is one of GE’s most prominent ecomaginationSM products.  Ecomagination is a GE-wide initiative to help meet customer demand for more energy efficient products.

To learn more about GE’s announcements in China this week, visit http://www.ge.com/chinanews.

via 3blmedia.com

 

CSR Minute: October 19, 2009 – Ceres and Clean Economy Network’s Jobs Day; CauseMedia’s “NameYourCause” campaign

Corporate Social Responsible News: Ceres and Clean Economy Network’s Jobs Day; CauseMedia’s “NameYourCause” campaign

Expert: US is “climate illiterate”

COP15 United Nations Climate Change Conference Copenhagen 2009

Wavering climate commitment on the part of the United States could undermine action to save the planet, the director of Germany’s Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research said on Monday, according to Reuters.

Hans Schellnhuber said the doubts of many Republican US senators over the practicality of a draft, domestic climate law aimed at capping greenhouse gas emissions undermined the chances of strong global action soon.

“It’s a deeper problem in the United States, if you look at global polls about what the public knows about climate change, even in Brazil, China you have more people who know the problem, who think that deep cuts in emissions are needed,” he said.

“The United States is in a sense climate illiterate still. If you look at what people in the Republican party think about this problem it’s very unlikely you come up with something.”

Democrat senators are due to unveil, on September 30, a new draft climate bill for the Senate to vote on. A bill calling for a 17 percent emissions cut by 2020 compared to 2005 levels was passed by the House of Representatives in June.

Most analysts doubt the US Congress will back the bill before a decisive UN climate conference in Copenhagen in December, where a new global climate pact is set to be negotiated.

via en.cop15.dk

CSR Minute: September 18, 2009 – Lexus Chooses Visible Light Solar Technologies; Time Magazine’s Values Poll; U of Tenn’s Frat Charity

Corporate Social Responsible News:Lexus Chooses Visible Light Solar Technologies; Time Magazine’s Social Values Poll; U of Tenn’s Frat Charity Event