The electric car business got a major setback yesterday when the Better Place company applied in an Israeli court to be wound up, writes Brian Byrne.The company in partnership with Renault had hoped to kick-start the EV business in a major way with operations in Denmark and Israel.
The initiative involved setting up charging and battery-swap infrastructures, with Renault envisaging 100,000 electric car sales between the two countries, mainly from fleets.
Just 900 electric cars were bought in Israel under the scheme, and around 400 in Denmark.
The company has already lost more than €431m on the initiative.
In a statement, Renault said its network in Israel and in Denmark will continue to provide after-sales servicing for Fluence ZE and these vehicles’ batteries.
The company added that this decision 'does not at all call into question the electric vehicle strategy of the Renault-Nissan Alliance'. "The Alliance is the world leader in terms of electric vehicles, and the volumes of Renault’s EVs continue to progress month after month," the statement concluded.
