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e-bus case backed by Al Gore, BMW","proterras-e-bus-case-backed-by-al-gore-bmw","article/proterras-e-bus-case-backed-by-al-gore-bmw",{"_uid":557,"date":558,"tags":559,"editor":560,"content":570,"excerpt":696,"featured":50,"reporter":697,"_editable":701,"component":702,"seo_title":553,"categories":703,"visibility":710,"author_company":49,"featured_image":711,"seo_description":696,"author_full_name":49,"author_job_title":49,"formattedDate":716,"formattedArticleDate":717},"2f213647-eabc-4e12-b0db-ad56bad5578e","2017-07-26 00:00",[],[561],{"slug":562,"name":563,"content":564},"didi-bostock","Didi Bostock",{"job_title":565,"image":566,"bio":568,"linkedin":569},"Editor - Energy Transition & Economics",{"filename":567},"https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/512x512/2c5ca5c1a3/didi-bostock.jpeg","Didi is the Energy Transition & Economics Editor at Benchmark, covering a broad range of markets across the energy transition. His remit spans from downstream sectors such as BESS and EVs, through to midstream such as new technologies and battery production, to upstream critical minerals mining. He also leads on financial analysis across these supply chains, alongside in-depth policy analysis.\n","https://www.linkedin.com/in/didi-bostock-656342198/",{"type":571,"content":572},"doc",[573,580,585,590,595,600,605,610,615,620,625,630,635,638,643,648,653,658,663,668,673,678,683,688,693],{"type":574,"attrs":575,"content":576},"paragraph",{"textAlign":49},[577],{"text":578,"type":579},"Proterra has made a compelling case for electric buses (e-bused) that could see quicker acceleration for the pure electric vehicles (EVs) in western cities than first anticipated.","text",{"type":574,"attrs":581,"content":582},{"textAlign":49},[583],{"text":584,"type":579},"The case which includes cost parity with diesel hybrids, significant fuel savings, and a bus that can travel 350 miles (563km) on a single charge has been backed by Generation Investment Management, a fund founded by former US-vice president, Al Gore, and BMW’s venture capital arm, BMW i Ventures.",{"type":574,"attrs":586,"content":587},{"textAlign":49},[588],{"text":589,"type":579},"This year alone the company, based just outside of San Francisco in Burlingame, California, has been successful in two fundraising rounds of $140m and $55m and is expected to IPO later this year.",{"type":574,"attrs":591,"content":592},{"textAlign":49},[593],{"text":594,"type":579},"“We are already seen transit vehicles go electric faster than cars because their fuel consumption is high,” explained Ryan Popple, CEO of Proterra.",{"type":574,"attrs":596,"content":597},{"textAlign":49},[598],{"text":599,"type":579},"“The demand is greater if you are running a heavy vehicle and burning 10,000 gallons of fuel per year,” he said.",{"type":574,"attrs":601,"content":602},{"textAlign":49},[603],{"text":604,"type":579},"Mainly owing to lower lithium ion battery costs, the price difference between a hybrid diesel bus and a pure electric is now inconsequential.",{"type":574,"attrs":606,"content":607},{"textAlign":49},[608],{"text":609,"type":579},"The shift from lithium ion battery cells that cost $200-250/kWh to under $150/kWh today has rendered new technologies like e-buses relevant not only due to this cost decline but the ability for manufactures to install larger batteries for longer range.",{"type":574,"attrs":611,"content":612},{"textAlign":49},[613],{"text":614,"type":579},"Proterra’s product evolution to date has underlined this trend starting with small capacity e-buses with a 72kWh battery pack in 2009 to today’s largest model which has a 660kWh pack. The economics now allow for significantly large battery packs to be installed – a gamer changer for the industry.",{"type":574,"attrs":616,"content":617},{"textAlign":49},[618],{"text":619,"type":579},"“[There are] two reasons driving demand,” explained Popple, “[The first is that] these vehicles are now fully capable of replacing the traditional diesel bus.”",{"type":574,"attrs":621,"content":622},{"textAlign":49},[623],{"text":624,"type":579},"“[The second is] pricing – the electric bus is the same price point as a diesel hybrid. For a city like New York, Baltimore or San Jose that’s already buying diesel hybrids buses, the price differential to go full EV is now very small. This is one of the reasons the market has ramped up,” the ex-Tesla executive added.",{"type":574,"attrs":626,"content":627},{"textAlign":49},[628],{"text":629,"type":579},"An intendent study for NYT Transit in 2016 showed that the average lifetime cost of a pure electric bus was $1.18m, 70% of which was the purchase price yet only 5% was fuel and the remaining costs due to maintenance.",{"type":574,"attrs":631,"content":632},{"textAlign":49},[633],{"text":634,"type":579},"Comparing this to a diesel bus, the average lifetime cost of the vehicle was $1.348m of which only 42% was the purchase price but fuel accounting for 15% of the total. Interestingly, maintenance of the vehicle was a significant portion of the total cost at 43% highlighting the relative simplicity of electric vehicles compared to their internal combustion engine counterparts.",{"type":574,"attrs":636,"content":637},{"textAlign":49},[],{"type":574,"attrs":639,"content":640},{"textAlign":49},[641],{"text":642,"type":579},"Battery breakdown ",{"type":574,"attrs":644,"content":645},{"textAlign":49},[646],{"text":647,"type":579},"Each of Proterra’s largest 40ft model, the Catalyst E2, contains a huge 660kWh capacity lithium ion battery using a nickel manganese cobalt chemistry – one of the largest used in a mainstream EV to date.",{"type":574,"attrs":649,"content":650},{"textAlign":49},[651],{"text":652,"type":579},"The size of the battery pack is a critical factor to being able to drive 350 miles (563km) on a single charge.",{"type":574,"attrs":654,"content":655},{"textAlign":49},[656],{"text":657,"type":579},"In raw material terms, this contains over half a tonne of lithium, 800kg of graphite anode, and 150kg of cobalt.",{"type":574,"attrs":659,"content":660},{"textAlign":49},[661],{"text":662,"type":579},"One of these buses sold by Proterra would equate to 11 Tesla Model 3s.",{"type":574,"attrs":664,"content":665},{"textAlign":49},[666],{"text":667,"type":579},"The battery pack is charged from the roof of the bus rather than the side or undercarriage – a “single blade” mechanism designed so the driver does not have to leave the vehicle.",{"type":574,"attrs":669,"content":670},{"textAlign":49},[671],{"text":672,"type":579},"It is a fast charging system that Proterra made available for all to use in 2016.",{"type":574,"attrs":674,"content":675},{"textAlign":49},[676],{"text":677,"type":579},"“With the recent issuance of foundational patents covering this technology, Proterra is now clear to offer a complete technology package to the market. Proterra will grant anyone royalty-free access to its patents covering its industry leading single-blade overhead charging design. This includes the bus-mounted, single-blade charging design and the overhead charging coupler,” the company explained in June 2016.",{"type":574,"attrs":679,"content":680},{"textAlign":49},[681],{"text":682,"type":579},"While the electric bus market has gained traction in China – even being the main contributor to lithium’s 2015-2016 price spike as demand for lithium iron phosphate and nickel manganese cobalt batteries surged – in the US and Europe it has taken a back seat to EVs.",{"type":574,"attrs":684,"content":685},{"textAlign":49},[686],{"text":687,"type":579},"The era of the semi mass market EV has taken the limelight to date with Tesla launching Model 3, Chevrolet and General Motors developing the Bolt and Nissan planning to double the capacity of its pioneering EV, the LEAF to 60kWh in Q1 2018.",{"type":574,"attrs":689,"content":690},{"textAlign":49},[691],{"text":692,"type":579},"Understandingly e-buses are not as exciting a prospecting for the individual buyer, but with cities around the world having to manage every tightening budgets with a serious air quality issue, all roads are leading towards e-buses and perhaps quicker than we first thought.",{"type":574,"attrs":694,"content":695},{"textAlign":49},[],"Proterra has made a compelling case for electric buses (e-bused) that could see quicker acceleration for the pure electric vehicles (EVs) in western cities than first anticipated. The case which includes cost parity with diesel hybrids, significant fuel savings, and a bus that can travel 350 miles (563km) on a single charge has been backed […]",[698],{"slug":562,"name":563,"content":699},{"job_title":565,"image":700,"bio":568,"linkedin":569},{"filename":567},"\u003C!--#storyblok#{\"name\": \"article\", \"space\": \"\", \"uid\": \"2f213647-eabc-4e12-b0db-ad56bad5578e\", \"id\": \"\"}-->","article",[704,707],{"slug":705,"name":706},"batteries","Batteries",{"slug":708,"name":709},"critical-minerals","Critical Minerals","private",{"id":49,"alt":712,"name":712,"focus":712,"title":712,"source":712,"filename":713,"copyright":712,"fieldtype":714,"meta_data":715,"is_external_url":51},"","https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/58e83e87a4/bm-proterra.png","asset",{"alt":712,"title":712,"source":712,"copyright":712},"Jul 26, 2017","26th July 2017",[],[],1792773945500]