Better days for Better Place EV car company. Moshe Kaplinsky at the company’s first battery charge station in 2008.
It seems things at Israel’s Better Place electric car company are going from bad to worse. Israeli news outlets are reporting that the company’s CEO Moshe Kaplinsky has quit, over disagreements with the company’s main shareholder Idan Ofer. This comes in the wake of its leader Shai Agassi having been fired, and massive layoffs at the Israel branch of the company. Kaplinsky is an ex-IDF general and the rumors on the ground are that he plans to get into politics.
After quitting, the company’s new global CEO, Evan Thornley from Australia sent a letter to all the staff stating that the company would need to tighten its belt in order to survive.
Over all the sales of Better Place, Renault-built electric cars have been extremely disappointing. Despite all the marketing and fanfare among local celebrities and Jews from around the world who excitedly who come to the center to test drive one of one of the cars, people aren’t really buying. Except for these guys we interviewed who bought two of the 490 cars sold, one-eighth of its anticipated sales till now. Some 38 of the 45 battery change “quick drop” stations have been built.
I’m shocked! What’s next?