Mar 17, 2015 - 10:04 am

Klaus Froehlich, Jason Forcier.

“I don’t think a retrofit makes sense. When better batteries are available, we could then offer models with a longer range or with the same range but at a lower price.”

BMW r&d chief Klaus Froehlich and his team have begun brainstorming on the next member of the i-family. Regarding current i3 and i8 owners, however, may have content themselves with what they got, since replacing batteries with more powerful ones is very complex.
autonews.com

“We won’t spend too much effort on the EV markets in Europe or the U.S., because we don’t see them as viable markets in the next 10 years.”

In fact, A123 CEO Jason Forcier does not see EVs as a very viable market in general, apart from maybe China. His company will shift its focus away from Li-ion batteries for the likes of Fisker to concentrate on starter batteries instead.
autonews.com

Aug 28, 2014 - 09:01 am

Hubertus Troska, Peter Mertens, Jason Forcier.

“We’re very upbeat because we definitely believe we have the best Chinese electric vehicle.”

Hubertus Troska, head of Daimler in China, is excited about the launch of the Denza electric car, designed for the Chinese market. Though he declined to comment on sales targets.
online.wsj.com

“We say for the next five or six years minimum, plug-in hybrids is the right answer.”

Peter Mertens, Volvo’s senior vice president of research and development say that the company will continue to focus on PHEV, because there is a larger market at time. But he does say that may change as battery prices drop.
drive.com.au

“We’re not where we want to be yet, but we’re the largest lithium-ion battery maker in Michigan, and we’re coming back.”

Jason Forcier, CEO of A123 Systems, is certain that his company will make it back to the top with its new line of smaller low-voltage cells for the “micro-hybrid.” That is also because the batteries’ weight has been reduced significantly.
hybridcars.com