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All-electric Nissan Rogue that can be used in Hawaii  (Source: Better Place)
Hawaii continues to look for ways to go green

Hawaii Gov. Linda Lingle has unveiled a plan for the island state to create an electric car network by 2012, helping rid the state of its heavy dependence on foreign oil.

Electric car company Better Place will be the company responsible for building the electric car network that will cost an estimated $200 million to $250 million in construction.  Better Place has not signed any investors for the project, but will intensify its search in the immediate future.

Better Place was founded by former SAP AG executive Shai Agassi, who is helping lead discussions regarding the same technology in Australia, Denmark, Israel and San Francisco.

Consumers who purchase or lease electric cars will be able to visit Better Place supply recharging service locations to switch out their lithium ion car battery for a full-charged new one.  Better Place will then recharge the new battery during off-peak electricity hours.

Hawaii imports oil for about 90 percent of its total energy needs, which totals around $7 billion per year.  Around one-third of all imported oil is used for cars and buses.  Gov. Lingle wants the state to cut around 70 percent of its fossil fuel use by 2030.

"This is the preferred future," Lingle said during a press conference. "Today is a part of the execution of our energy independence, and our getting off the addiction to oil."

Better Place will purchase wind power and other renewable energies from Hawaiian Electric Co., and other Hawaii-based companies.

The Palo Alto, Calif.-based company is working with Nissan, and plans to talk to Chrysler, GM and Ford.  Other car makers are expected to follow suit, as they will likely want to sell cars where Better Place is building recharging stations.

Better Place anticipates it will build 50,000 to 100,000 charge spots across Hawaii by 2011.  Mass market availability of electric cars should be available to the Hawaiian market in 2012.

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Windmill Graveyard
By therealnickdanger on 12/3/2008 2:21:35 PM , Rating: 3
I spent a few weeks recently on the Big Island and witnessed Hawaii's commitment to "going green". The south side of the island - one of the windiest places around - has a multitude of rusted, busted turbines lining the coast. Total eyesore, not generating any power...

Honestly, if it can't work there...?




RE: Windmill Graveyard
By Seemonkeyscanfly on 12/3/2008 2:42:05 PM , Rating: 2
Salt, water and metal not good together....


RE: Windmill Graveyard
By Chernobyl68 on 12/3/2008 3:34:11 PM , Rating: 3
Europe has tons of offshore wind farms. Sounds like these just aren't maintained.


RE: Windmill Graveyard
By heffeque on 12/3/2008 9:13:21 PM , Rating: 2
Spanish wind farm produce 11% of the electricity needed for the nation and the other day it peaked at 43% of the country's needs. That's quite a lot considering it's more than 46 million inhabitants.
Taking into consideration that the country is investing even more in renewable sources each year, it won't take it long to start closing some contaminating energy sources (they've already closed a couple old nuclear plants).

Two things to point out: Spain produces 20% of the wind energy of the whole world, and it's the second largest at solar energy, just a bit below Germany in absolute numbers, but higher than Germany in per cápita numbers. Oh, and it's above the States in absolute numbers (even if it's a country that's a little smaller than Texas).


RE: Windmill Graveyard
By BladeVenom on 12/4/2008 3:37:17 AM , Rating: 2
Denmark is the country that gets the highest percentage of their electricity from wind. Electricity is also expensive there.


RE: Windmill Graveyard
By Clauzii on 12/3/2008 4:01:10 PM , Rating: 2
The Danish 'Horns Rev' is placed ~10 nautic out at sea. It has a capacity of 160 MW. I'll guess it's coated and what-do-I-know.


RE: Windmill Graveyard
By Smartless on 12/3/2008 2:49:58 PM , Rating: 2
Lol too true. Though I think the northwest of the island has more turbines which are less rusted but still old and not too useful. Yeah the Big Island has lots of things they've tried but none have been pursued past the current facilities. Sad. If any island should have been able to go renewable it would have been that island.

On a side note... Funny part of course is Hawaii may use 1/3 of its oil for fuel in cars but the rest of the 2/3 must go to generating electricity anyway. Especially Oahu.


RE: Windmill Graveyard
By NEOCortex on 12/3/2008 3:48:43 PM , Rating: 3
Exactly what I was thinking. They say that about 1/3 of the oil they import is used for cars and buses. But what does the other 2/3 go to. Probably power plants (as well as boats and planes). So if they go electric, all that oil just gets diverted to power plants instead. And somehow they want to cut fossil fuel (basically oil) usage by 70%. Good luck finding that kind of energy somewhere else.

Looks like some islands utilize geothermal power as well as wind power, but they're going to need to significantly expand those in addition to maybe going nuclear to make up for the oil.


RE: Windmill Graveyard
By Some1ne on 12/3/2008 4:50:02 PM , Rating: 2
I don't understand why they don't just go for geothermal. They're in the right place to take advantage of it.


RE: Windmill Graveyard
By spread on 12/3/2008 8:41:00 PM , Rating: 2
Good idea. Drill a hole into a high pressure active volcano.


RE: Windmill Graveyard
By Smartless on 12/4/2008 1:40:25 PM , Rating: 3
Activists and Hawaiian's don't like harming the "aina". In case you're wondering "aina" in Hawaiian means land. Puna geothermal produces roughly 11.5 megawatts. Could go more. Funnier part is other countries along the Pacific Rim Techtonic plate use it more than Hawaii's potential.


RE: Windmill Graveyard
By bodar on 12/4/2008 6:01:56 PM , Rating: 3
Yep, Hawaiian superstition is pretty bad at times. Just ask Whole Foods.

quote:
“I think it’s barbaric,” Kaleikini says. She gets emotional talking about how the remains of a child were among those found at the site and worries that the baby had been separated from its family. “This is my ohana. How would you feel if we were talking about moving your grandparents’ bones?”


http://www.honolulumagazine.com/Honolulu-Magazine/...


RE: Windmill Graveyard
By 85 on 12/3/2008 5:09:17 PM , Rating: 3
i lived on the Big Island for 17 years. Southpoint from what i've seen is one of the best places on earth for wind power. Every time ive EVER been there was not without a strong wind. the problem with the white rusted windmills is $$$. there has never really been any upkeep. im pretty sure they are the same ones i saw ~20 years ago.


Another option.....
By Seemonkeyscanfly on 12/3/2008 2:11:05 PM , Rating: 2
a really, really, really long extension cord....

The battery swap idea sounds good at first, but I can not help but think about my gas grill. I avoid having my tank filled by companies that just swaps my tank for a different tank... I give them a new tank, they give me back a piece of junk. I understand in someplace this issue has been addressed but it what comes to mind.




RE: Another option.....
By acer905 on 12/3/2008 2:19:02 PM , Rating: 1
What about using "wireless power" pads, similar to what intel has come up with. Just embed them in the roads at certain intervals. OR put lasers in the road insteady. Either way, just have a receiver on the car, and it will absorb energy as it drives over it.

To conserve the power, it could have a sensor the appropriate distance away (for whatever speed the road is set up for) and as a car drives over it, it activates the pad and by the time the car goes over the power pad there is a blast of energy hitting the car.


RE: Another option.....
By Seemonkeyscanfly on 12/3/2008 2:39:31 PM , Rating: 2
Sure that sounds more practical but then you would not have miles of extension cord taking out, clothes lining, tripping, or flipping unsuspecting pedestrians; like olds ladies with shopping bags.... We have all these cameras at the intersections now, we might has well have some comic relief broadcasted out to the people. Then we could harness the power of laughter like they did in Monsters Inc.

Just a thought....


RE: Another option.....
By cornelius785 on 12/3/2008 4:31:32 PM , Rating: 3
I always get a chuckle out of 'wireless power' and people pushing for it. There are many technical reasons why I chuckle. I just don't feel comfortable with hundreds possibly thousands of watts permeating through the air.

In order to get a 1 ton car to ~40 mph, you'll need 162000 joules. Suppose you want to get up to speed in ~10 seconds, that's 16kW ignoring any sort of friction or efficiencies, nowhere near a little lightbulb. Vehicles need lots of energy to get up to speed and maintain that speed. Based on this alone, I hope you are joking.


RE: Another option.....
By acer905 on 12/4/2008 10:35:37 AM , Rating: 2
Yes, wireless power may have issues, but that was the reason for the laser option as well.

As for energy needed, of course starting takes a lot of energy, but maintaining a speed requires far less. Still, it would probably be difficult to supply the needed energy to keep the vehicle moving forever, however range would be increased. Couple it with any form of regenerative breaking, and it would assist in getting the vehicle moving again. Its not about running the car off the "lasers" or whatever, its a simple matter of extending the range


RE: Another option.....
By JediJeb on 12/4/2008 3:25:43 PM , Rating: 3
Why not just put conductive strips on the highway and run them like slot cars.

Of course people could step on them and get shocked, but at least you would know who was jaywalking.


RE: Another option.....
By YellowDuck on 12/3/2008 3:11:51 PM , Rating: 2
How about just swapping cars like a zip car network.


Who is going to load and unload the battery packs?
By 3DoubleD on 12/3/2008 2:16:03 PM , Rating: 2
quote:
Consumers who purchase or lease electric cars will be able to visit Better Place supply recharging service locations to switch out their lithium ion car battery for a full-charged new one.


Those battery packs will be very heavy if the car has any sort of range comparable to current vehicles. I can't imagine customers lifting or carrying something over 50 pounds and I'm sure these battery backs will weight at least that much. Even if you had full service stations, how big could they make those battery packs until it becomes too awkward for the attendant to work 8 hours without damaging cars or batteries?

Any ideas?