Product Name: Detroit Conference on Plug-in Electric Vehicles

Product Description

This may come as no shock to readers of Gas 2.0, but the complexity and number of major players involved in making this happen is not easily grasped. This is why the conference, called The Business of Plugging In, brought a diverse, all-star cast of speakers to Detroit. A few of them are featured in next month’s Inc. Magazine, which does a fantastic job of describing what’s being called the ‘Electric Car Ecosystem.’ It looks something like this: Electric cars must be built (by automakers and new venture-backed start-ups), supported by a supply chain of new components (like batteries and new types of electric motors) as well as new manufacturing capabilities, which are all being made possible by major grants (from state and Federal government). The cars will be fueled by electricity (provided by utilities) in a fashion that must not overwhelm the power grid (and aggravate consumers and utility companies), and will ideally be sourced from new low-carbon power (like wind and solar) in a way that intelligently connects the car to the grid and the web.

Company Details

Documents a student engineering competition in which universities compete in modifying a donated SUV to achieve a more fuel efficient vehicle. more