Daimler and RWE are teaming up on a project called e-Mobility Berlin that will turn the German city into a laboratory for electric vehicles. The duo is building off an experiment involving 100 prototypes of Daimler’s smart ed (electric drive) coupe that were tested on the streets of London. The newest smart coupe was introduced to the public a few weeks ago to mark the 10th anniversary of Daimler’s subsidiary. Daimler’s brain trust has hopes that the e-Mobility Berlin project will lead to commercial production of the smart ed by 2010.
Daimler’s contribution to e-Mobility Berlin would be ineffective without the help of RWE AG’s infrastructure support. RWE is one of Germany’s leading utility companies and will help Daimler create a prototype electrical grid with 500 charging ports. The company is busy at the moment developing and producing ports that can be installed in homes, businesses and parks throughout Berlin. Daimler and RWE are getting plenty of support from the German government in its effort to encourage alternative fuel sources.
The e-Mobility Berlin project will help Daimler and RWE AG determine the efficiency of energy transfer as well as consumer payments on a larger scale. Each coupe used in this project will feature a wireless communication device as well as a lithium ion battery that should bring positive results on both counts. Every vehicle that plugs into a charging station will be charged automatically from the driver’s account established through RWE. The lithium-ion battery in each smart coupe will transfer energy back into the grid when a high number of users are charging and take in energy during periods of low demand.
While the e-Mobility Berlin effort will probably succeed in Germany, the results will not reverberate to decision makers in the United States. The abundance of food and non-food sources for ethanol as well as strong lobbying efforts by natural gas companies place all-electric vehicles in a darkened corner. Many legislators and energy experts are loath to encourage electrical infrastructure due to the supposed strain it would place on overburdened systems. This fear of blackouts in cities like New York City and Los Angeles would be eliminated with an effective vehicle-to-grid connection proven by the e-Mobility Berlin project.
