Berlin to charge up Smart cars

Stuttgart, Germany's Daimler (NYSE: DAI) has revved up its plug-in electric vehicle plans with a deal Berlin, teaming up with Essen-based utility RWE (OTC:RWEOY) on a pilot project in the country's capital. The project will see more than 100 electric cars on the road and a network of 500 charging stations.

But Daimler and RWE have yet to announce any other partners in the Berlin trial.

Daimler currently has a pilot project in London, where a test fleet of about 100 first-generation Smart Fortwo electric cars are being used by corporate groups and municipal authorities, including the London Police. The U.K.'s Zytek Group is handling final assembly of those first generation vehicles, which are using Zebra sodium nickel chloride batteries, made by Switzerland's MES-DEA.

Eva Wiese, a spokeswoman for Daimler, told the Cleantech Group that the new Smart cars in Berlin will have a greater range.

"The London one has 115 kilometers, and we think that with the new battery technology it will be a little better, but we haven't specified it yet."

Recent reports have pegged San Carlos, Calif.-based Tesla Motors, maker of the high-speed electric Tesla Roadster, as a battery supplier for Daimler, but the Germany automaker is keeping tight-lipped about its power plans.

"We have been in talks with various companies, but I cannot confirm anything," said Wiese.

Daimler did say it plans to use lithium-ion batteries in the new cars, with the battery technology to first show up in the Mercedes S 400 BlueHYBRID as early as next year. The BlueHYBRID luxury sedan is being designed to use only 7.9 liters of gasoline for every 100 kilometers, accelerating from zero to 100 kilometers per hour in 7.3 seconds.

RWE, one of Germany's largest energy providers, will develop, install and operate the charging infrastructure in Berlin, with Daimler providing electric Mercedes-Benz and Smart cars, as well as vehicle service. The cost of the project was not disclosed, but the companies said the program is getting some support from the German federal government.

Take a look at one of the Smart cars here >>

The project pits Daimler against companies like the Renault-Nissan Alliance, which already has plans in the works for electric cars in Israel, Denmark, Portugal and Tennessee (see Electric vehicles in the spotlight). The Renault Nissan Alliance was formed in 1999 by France's Renault and Japan's Nissan Motor (Nasdaq: NSANY).

The alliance is working with Palo Alto, Calif.-based car charging startup Project Better Place on the Israel and Denmark projects.

For Daimler and RWE, a difference in technology makes a team-up with Project Better Place unlikely.

"Better Place, they are sharing the batteries," said Wiese. "We are not doing that. We are working on — everybody has his own battery and just to charge them."

Project Better Place launched last year with significant backing from Israel Corp., Morgan Stanley and VantagePoint Venture Partners (see Electric car charging startup raises $200M). Using a subscription model, drivers will be able to plug into electric chargers as well as use battery exchange stations that are expected to be set up at parking lots around the world.

The development phase for Daimler and RWE's Berlin project is starting now, with the first vehicles to roll off the production line at the end of 2009, but Daimler is already looking for other cities to work with.

"There will be for sure other cities in Europe, maybe also in the U.S. or also in Asia," said Wiese. "We are interested in getting some more experience and some feedback from customers, and we think that this feedback with vary between the various countries."

Charging stations for the Berlin project will be installed at customers' homes, workplaces and in public parking areas, but the stations may end up doing more than just charge up the cars. The companies said the network is already being designed for the next step in the technology, vehicle-to-grid charging, where energy stored in the vehicle is fed back into the supply network.

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