Fool.com comments on ENER
The Motley Fool finally had something good to say about an alternative energy stock. It just so happens to be for one I purchased earlier this morning. Don't look now, but Energy Conversion Devices might just prove to be that rare bird an alternative energy play with actual products and a reasonable chance of living up to lofty investor expectations. ... It would appear to me that hybrid vehicle batteries are the biggest near-term opportunity. Although the company didn't specify the customers, it has acknowledged receiving production orders for battery packs. They say that...
EV Fast Charging Disincentives
by Daryl Roberts
DC Fast Chargers (DCFCs) and Tesla superchargers are a key element in electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure that could facilitate wider adoption of EVs by enabling recharging that comes to resemble the time currently taken for gas station stops, and thereby reducing “range anxiety” for drivers.
However, the pricing structure for electrical costs incurred at commercial DC fast chargers is currently prohibitive, because it includes a special fee called a “demand charge”. Rate design in a number of states includes this additional charge, based on the “peak rate” on electric power consumed in kW. In New York,...
Debunking The PHEV Mythology
John Petersen This week has been fascinating because of three articles that found their way to my computer. The first was a thematic piece in McKinsey Quarterly titled "Profiting from the low-carbon economy" that included a carbon abatement cost graph which showed full hybrid automobiles (HEVs) offered CO2 abatement savings of roughly $50 per ton while plug-in hybrid automobiles (PHEVs) imposed CO2 abatement costs of roughly $20 per ton, or slightly more than a nuclear power plant. The second was GM's widely publicized announcement that the Volt would get 230 miles per gallon. The third was...
The Best Peak Oil Investments: Six More Electric Vehicle and Hybrid Electric Stocks
Tom Konrad CFA My Ten Electric Vehicle (EV) Stocks article drew considerable attention and comments, including suggestions for stocks that did not make the ten. Here are my takes on the EV stocks suggested by readers. All of these companies do have something to do with electric vehicles (EVs) or hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), but many were omitted from the original list because EV and HEV exposure was quite small as a fraction of total revenue. This matters because, even when a small segment of a company is growing rapidly, it can have very little effect on...
Watching The EV Rose Wilt
John Petersen October has been a fun month for me as JD Power and Associates rained on the electric vehicle parade with a new report "Green Drive 2020; More Hope than Reality?" that forecast a 1.8% global market penetration rate for cars with plugs in 2020; Maxwell Technologies (MXWL) announced a design win in the automotive stop-start market; Pike Research issued a new report on power systems for hybrid locomotives; Nanomarkets LLC reported that lead-carbon batteries will be a leading contender in the $1 billion wind-power storage market; Lux Research began advertising an upcoming webinar to introduce their...
List of Natural Gas Vehicle Stocks
Natural gas vehicle (NGV) stocks are publicly traded companies whose business involves the use of natural gas (compressed natural gas (CNG) or liquefied natural gas (LNG) as a transportation fuel. See also the lists of efficient vehicle stocks, alternative transportation stocks, electric vehicle stocks, hydrogen stocks, fuel cell stocks, biofuel stocks, biodiesel stocks, and ethanol stocks for other companies reducing the use of petroleum in transportation.
This post was last updated on 11/9/2019.
Cheniere Energy, Inc (LNG)
Clean Energy Fuels (CLNE)
Landi Renzo S.p.A. (LR.MI, LDRZF)
Power Solutions International (PSIX)
Westport Innovations Inc. (WPRT).
Xebec Absorption (XBC.V or XEBEF)
If you know of any natural gas vehicle...
Vehicle Electrification – Press Releases, Production Decisions and The Hype Cycle
John Petersen Writing an investment blog on hype-riddled sectors like vehicle electrification and energy storage is tough because the topic is emotionally charged and expectations are often based on political promises, issue advocacy, press releases and mainstream media stories that never tell the complete truth. As a result I spend a huge amount of time debunking popular mythology that's 180 degrees out of sync with business realities and responding to commenters who refuse to believe cars with plugs will be: Five to six times less efficient than HEVs when it comes to reducing national gasoline consumption; Nine...
2005 Ford Hybrid Added to Oregon Tax Credit List
Oregon continues rewarding people who buy hybrid cars. The state Department of Energy has announced that the 2005 Ford Escape will qualify for tax credits. Tax credits already apply to the 2004 Toyota Prius, Honda Civic and Honda Insight, and state DOE officials expect that the 2005 models of those cars will also qualify. I wanted to point out one key paragraph from the article above. Demand for Hybrid automobiles is soaring. In 2003, 509 people took advantage of the tax credit, said Justin Klure, a policy analyst with the Department of Energy. So far this...
Hybrid Locomotives, Vehicle Electrification at Relevant Scale
John Petersen Last month Ricardo PLC (RCDOF.PK) published a report titled "GB Rail Diesel Powertrain Efficiency Improvements" that it prepared for Great Britain's Department for Transport. While most of the fuel efficiency technologies Ricardo evaluated for the report were mechanical systems, its analysis of the fuel efficiency benefits of stop-start and hybrid systems for locomotives offered an intriguing view of a cost-effective vehicle electrification opportunity that can be implemented at relevant scale within a few years. The two types of locomotive systems Ricardo evaluated for the report were simple stop-start idle elimination and full hybridization. The following table...
UQM Technologies Receives Contract From the U.S. Army to Develop Advanced Vehicle Propulsion Motor
Unique Mobility Inc (UQM) announced that it has received a contract from the U.S. Army's Tank Automotive and Armaments Command (TACOM) to develop an advanced vehicle propulsion motor for application as a wheel mounted electric propulsion system for hybrid electric combat vehicles being developed under the Army's Future Combat Systems (FCS) program. The one year development effort will focus on the validation of a proprietary new design for a permanent magnet electric motor that has the potential to triple the torque capability compared to existing UQM(R) propulsion motors. Army funding for the cost-share project is $242,548 or 77...
EPA Says VW Running Massive Clean Air Scam
Jim Lane VW is facing up to $18.07 billion in fines; recalls, mandatory vehicle emission fixes on the horizon; investigations underway at EPA and in California as “defeat devices” uncovered that evade clean air regulations. In Washington, EPA issued a notice of violation of the Clean Air Act to Volkswagen AG, Audi AG, and Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. alleging that four-cylinder Volkswagen and Audi diesel cars from model years 2009-2015 carry a “defeat device” which circumvents EPA emissions standards for certain air pollutants. Specifically, the EPA alleges that a sophisticated software algorithm on certain Volkswagen vehicles detects...
The Obama High-Speed Rail Strategy: What Will Happen When The Steel Meets The Track?
Over the past few weeks, John Petersen has written a number of very insightful articles on the energy storage space, with a particular focus on automotive applications. To be sure, this sector has gotten a lot more exciting since Obama's election, with real dollar commitments coming from the government and even tangible signs that certain technologies are moving into the mainstream. It is fair to say that, on the back of explicit state support, batteries and smart grid have dethroned solar as the new "hot" thing in alt energy/cleantech. Equally exciting in my view is the...
FedEx Expands Low Emission Vehicle Program to New York
The FedEx OptiFleet E700 hybrid electric vehicles began delivering packages on routes in the New York metropolitan area following an agreement with NYSERDA to demonstrate the viability of lower-emission hybrid powertrains in heavy-duty vehicles. The roll out took place today at a FedEx facility on 48th Street and 12th Avenue in Manhattan. "New York City is a dynamic economy with many trucks on its streets essential to keep commerce moving, so it is important that we continue to develop innovative solutions to reduce vehicle emissions," said John Formisano, Vice President of Global Vehicles, FedEx Express. "Today's roll-out not...
The Best Peak Oil Investments: Ten Electric and Hybrid Car Stocks
Tom Konrad CFA Tesla Motors (TSLA) is not the only electric vehicle (EV) stock. Here are nine other public companies helping to replace petroleum with electricity in our cars and trucks. Early in this series on the Best Peak Oil Investments, I put together an in-depth comparison of alternative fuels. I concluded that the best prospect for displacing oil in the long term is electricity supplemented by biofuels. Vehicle Electrification is likely to come to dominate the transportation sector because only renewable electricity can supply energy on the scale that we currently use for transportation with limited...
MiX Telematics: Fleet Efficiency, Saftey And Security At An African Discount
by Jan Schalkwijk, CFA In a recent article I wrote about the tech sector in Africa, I mentioned a South Africa company called MiX Telematics Ltd (NYSE:MIXT). There is a dearth of investable tech names in Africa and the worry is that investors would have to stretch to gain exposure to African tech. With this company, no stretching is necessary and it thus provides exposure to the African technology sector without comprising on value or quality. MiX Telematics is a company that provides fleet and mobile asset management solutions, delivered through the Software-as-a-Service "SaaS" model. The company seeks...
Betting on Alternative Fueling at Clean Energy Fuels
by Debra Fiakas CFA Clean Energy Fuels (CLNE: Nasdaq) is building a nationwide network of natural gas stations for fleet vehicles. The company supplies compressed natural gas (CNG) fuel for light, medium, and heavy-duty vehicles; and liquefied natural gas (LNG) fuel for medium and heavy-duty vehicles. While there is a growing number of fleet owners that have invested in natural gas vehicles, Clean Energy has yet to reach the critical mass needed to reach profitability. The company claimed 650 fleet owners as customers with over 30,000 vehicles in operation. Clean...
