It is apparently quite a hassle to buy the remains of Better Place. The last potential buyer, EV Net Group, missed a payment deadline at the end of September, leading a judge to void the purchase. The buyers were supposed to pay NIS 1.8 million (US$505,000), which was 20 percent of the total purchase price and did, in fact, hand over a postdated check for that amount. But that wasn't good enough. According to Haaretz, attorneys Shaul Kotler and Sigal Rozen-Rechav said in court that, "All the buyer did was to produce an anonymous check, in foreign currency, from a foreign bank account, despite being clearly told the payments could not be made this way." Before the EV Net Group sale was stopped, Isreal's "Captain Sunshine," aka Yosef Abramowitz, also tried to buy Better Place. That didn't happen.
Better Place has long focused on small country or island markets (Hawaii, Israel, Denmark), and that's why, despite the company's bankruptcy, a shift to Iceland would make sense given the original business plan. Plus, Gislason is already thinking about importing Better Place's leftover Renault Fluence EVs into Europe. We'll see whether any of this actually comes to pass. We tried to contact Better Place and the bankruptcy lawyers for a comment, but have not yet heard back.
These failed sales might turn off other potential buyers, but not our ambitious friend, the self-described "crazy Viking," Gisli Gislason. Gislason and his Northern Lights Energy company are doing more than selling Tesla Model S EVs sight-unseen in Iceland these days. They are also making a bid for Better Place. Gislason told AutoblogGreen that he has "always been interested in Better Place" and has been working on a deal there for over a year. "Everything has its time, the main thing is to stay alive," he said. "The story is that the Icelandic country is making a bid for Better Place. It is a great value and a great idea. Shai Agassi was a visionary.""Better Place is a great value and a great idea" - Gisli Gislason
Better Place has long focused on small country or island markets (Hawaii, Israel, Denmark), and that's why, despite the company's bankruptcy, a shift to Iceland would make sense given the original business plan. Plus, Gislason is already thinking about importing Better Place's leftover Renault Fluence EVs into Europe. We'll see whether any of this actually comes to pass. We tried to contact Better Place and the bankruptcy lawyers for a comment, but have not yet heard back.
Featured GalleryRenault Fluence Z.E.
