The first mainstream cars that plug into the electric grid are not expected for another year—but the battle to provide charging and battery services to those early adopters is already heating up. The tension between two companies which might provide those services was palpable on Monday during a panel discussion in Palo Alto, Calif., entitled “Electric Cars: Transformational Change or Niche Trend?” organized by German American Chamber of Commerce. General Motors and Better Place both believe they are best suited to helping plug-in cars owners maintain and charge their batteries.

Jason Wolf, head of Better Place’s California office, said the purchase of the electric car—what he called a "device"—will be separated from the necessary charging and maintenance of the batteries, much the way consumers buy a cell phone, but sign up for wireless service through a carrier. “A battery is like eight years worth of gasoline. When you walk into the dealership, you buy your vehicle now, you don’t buy eight years worth of gasoline. You need a business model that takes the ownership of the battery and provides it to you the same way Chevron provides your gasoline,” said Wolf. He believes consumers will also need “a smart network of charging infrastructure including the ability to swap that battery.”

Follow the Money

Better Place has signed a deal to provide those services for future Renault electric cars in Denmark and Israel. But will other carmakers warmly embrace Better Place’s model? Not according to panelist Byron Shaw, who manages GM’s advanced technology office in Palo Alto. “If there’s money to be made on batteries, we’re going to be one of the competitors trying to make money on it.” Shaw said that GM has been “on the short end of the stick for quite some time” when it comes to providing energy and other service for gas-powered cars. That could change with electric or plug-in hybrid cars, like the upcoming Chevy Volt. “There’s going to be a lot of competitors in the space and we certainly intend to be one.”

Shaw disagreed with the cell phone analogy, saying that there’s a big difference between a $100 cell phone, and a vehicle, which costs at least tens of thousands of dollars. He believes that the carmaker is best positioned to provide all the post-purchase services. “Do you want another bill from another service provider that has nothing to do with your vehicle? Buying the battery from General Motors with the vehicle and the financing agreement in one integrated package is the advantage an OEM (original equipment manufacturer) provides.”

GM’s Shaw pointed to the company’s OnStar crash notification system as a platform that could be used to help plug-in car owners monitor and maintain batteries. Wolf of Better Place responded, “OnStar is an example, I wouldn’t go as far to call it a good example, of the things a car can do once it becomes a network device. It doesn’t matter what the propulsion is. But when you start thinking about networks connected to the vehicle, you have a lot of capabilities.” Wolf specifically mentioned entertainment services and “advertising industry needs” that a networked car could provide. He added, “In looking at how industries cannibalize and change themselves, it doesn’t usually happen from the incumbents.”

A Better Way: Open Charging

The two other panelists stressed the need to build open charging systems that wouldn’t necessarily require services from either the carmaker or a dedicated third-party service. Mike DiNucci, vice president of strategic accounts for Coulomb Technologies, which sells networked charging stations, said, “We strongly believe that any system that’s going to be adopted by the mass market has to be an open system. There has to be interoperability. You can’t lock people into a particular type of technology or a type of subscription model, or it’s not going to work.”

Tom Gage, CEO of AC Propulsion, which has been making electric drive systems since the 1980s, took the concept of open-ness one step further. “The key to making electric vehicles useful is to allow people to charge anywhere, because electricity is the ultimate commodity that exists almost everywhere that people live.” AC Propulsion’s systems allow drivers to tap into that existing infrastructure using on board chargers as part of the car. “All you need is an extension cord and maybe some plug adapters to take advantage of electricity where you find it.”

Reprinted with permission from Hybrid Cars