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Better Place to Open Battery Switch Station at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol

The station is part of the European Commission’s first de-carbonization infrastructure project

Amsterdam, Netherlands — Better Place today announced the company will open its first battery switch station in the Netherlands at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. The Amsterdam battery switch station is the part of the first and only project to be funded under DG MOVE’s new de-carbonization infrastructure category in the “Trans-European Transport Network” program.

The Schiphol station, which is set to be completed this summer, will serve switchable battery electric taxis, providing them with virtually unlimited range as they commute back and forth from the airport to Amsterdam. The City of Amsterdam, like many governments and municipalities in Europe, is seeking innovative ways to reduce CO2 emissions and pollution. Electrification of taxis is one of their focus areas.

The switch station is being developed in partnership with the City of Amsterdam and Amsterdam Airport Schiphol and will initially serve 10 Renault Fluence Z.E. taxis operated by three leading Dutch taxi companies, Connexxion, Bios and TCA.

“Although taxis are not our typical customer segment, they are a great fit for our switchable battery model, as electric taxis cannot afford downtime when recharging their batteries,” said Jelle Vastert, Director of Business Development for Better Place in the Netherlands. “This is a great first step for Better Place in the Netherlands, and this program allows us to showcase the value of the Better Place model while evaluating the mass-market potential for electric cars in the region.”

The Better Place model overcomes the two historic barriers to mass adoption of electric cars -- cost and convenience. By separating the ownership of the car and the battery, Better Place eliminates the burdens of cost, maintenance, and warranty, as well as concerns regarding residual value and battery obsolescence, from the driver. Thanks to battery switch, Better Place gives drivers the same freedom of drive and unlimited range experienced in a petrol car.

Electric cars with depleted batteries need to simply pull into a switch station and the fully-automated process will simply switch their empty battery with a full one in five minutes, about the same amount of time it takes to fill a tank with petrol. Battery switch is the only means of range extension that allows electric taxis to maintain their same level of service with minimal downtime to charge.

“Amsterdam Airport Schiphol is supportive of innovative concepts that will enhance sustainable mobility at the airport. Electrification of transportation will play a key role in achieving this goal”, said Ad Rutten, Executive President and COO of Schiphol Group. “We are very pleased that Better Place has selected Schiphol airport to open their Switch Station and join forces with us and the taxi companies already involved at the airport in our ambition for a sustainable airport.”

Better Place is scaling up commercial operations in the company’s first two markets, Denmark and Israel. A similar process will follow in Canberra, Australia, in the second half of 2012.

About Better Place
Better Place is the leading global provider of electric car networks that enables the mass market adoption of electric cars through an innovative battery switch model that makes driving electric cars more affordable, convenient and sustainable than today’s petrol-based cars. Better Place owns and operates a network of battery switch stations and public/personal charge spots, along with the supply of batteries that power the cars, to provide drivers with instant range extension and the convenience to drive, switch and go across an entire region. Where possible, Better Place uses renewable sources of energy to deliver fully zero emissions driving. The World Economic Forum has named Better Place a “Global Growth Company Industry Shaper” for its innovative approach in advancing the global switch to electric cars. Check out www.betterplace.com