Israeli company StoreDot announced last month:
A new round of financing of $18 million for its new Electric Vehicle business unit, bringing the total funding to-date to $66 million. Investors in this round include mostly existing investors such as Norma Investments Limited, representing Roman Abramovich and Samsung Ventures. Other existing investors also include Singulariteam.
This round of funding is centered on the development and commercialization of the EV business unit. One of the company’s immediate goals is to build the first ever instantly-charging car prototype. Additionally, this funding will allow new hiring and additional labs for the new business unit.
In the associated “FlashBattery” section of their web site they point out that:
StoreDot is developing a new type of electric-car battery consisting of specially synthesized organic compounds – the same innovative materials used in its FlashBattery for mobile devices. While the charging experience is similar to fueling a gasoline car, EV FlashBattery cost of ownership is only half per mile compared to existing electric-vehicle batteries.
A significant and sustainable technological breakthrough, EV FlashBattery charges fully in 5 minutes, providing 300 miles (480 km) of driving distance. This fast charging technology shortens the amount of time drivers will have to wait in line to charge their cars, while also reducing the number of charging posts in each station, and considerably cutting the overall cost of owning an electric car.
EV FlashBattery’s remarkably fast charging rate is achieved due to StoreDot’s novel materials, comprising thousands of cells assembled and packed in a single battery module. When fully charged, the EV FlashBattery stores enough energy for a 300 mile (480 km) range on a 5 minute charge.
Allowing for less frequent battery replacement due to its increased number of cycles, EV FlashBattery results in a 50% cost reduction per mile over the electric vehicle’s lifetime, compared to existing battery technologies
As if all that isn’t exciting enough for you StoreDot point out in a related article that:
A country that is highly dependent on oil, China is responsible for nearly 25% of worldwide production [of emissions].
Following announcements by both the EU and the U.S. in the fall of 2014 to significantly slash GHG emissions by 2025, the Chinese government, too, pledged to reduce greenhouse emissions and to eliminate its reliance on imported oil by shifting away from conventional gasoline-powered vehicles and stimulating the use of renewable energy.
Despite government subsidies, demand for alternative-energy vehicles in China has been slow, and as of September 2014, the country had reached only 12% of its target for alternative-energy vehicles to be introduced by 2015.
This stems from several factors. First, as mentioned above, there are insufficient charging stations, which is holding back the adoption of EVs in the country.
Secondly, following the plunge in the price of crude oil in June 2014, gasoline prices have gradually gone down, leading to a decrease in the incentive to use EVs. This has led many EV owners in China to run their cars mostly on gasoline, which means that the electric capability is largely wasted, thus proving counterproductive regarding the environment.
A third factor is “range anxiety” – the driver’s fear of running out of power before reaching the nearest charging station – which is also an obstacle for electric-car adoption.
StoreDot FlashBattery technology addresses these issues by providing a driver experience similar to fuelling (without the fumes). Demand for EVs may increase substantially once the drivers are exposed to StoreDot’s 5-minute charging solution.
Given our own recent experiences of “EV range anxiety” we here at V2G UK cannot wait! The $64 gazillion question then is when will we ultimately be “exposed to StoreDot’s 5-minute charging solution”, or something similar from another company?