Better Place electric cars head to Hawaii

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Electric car company Better Place said on Tuesday it plans to develop a $200 million to $250 million electric car network in Hawaii, the latest market to join such efforts to cut global warming carbon emissions and pricey fuel imports.

Electric car company Better Place said on Tuesday it plans to develop a $200 million to $250 million electric car network in Hawaii, the latest market to join such efforts to cut global warming carbon emissions and pricey fuel imports.

Shai Agassi, founder and chief executive of privately owned Better Place, said the cost is an estimated "ballpark" range and that investors have yet to be lined up for the all-island project. Better Place has signed a memorandum of understanding with Hawaiian Electric Companies.

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Better Place plans to offer electric transportation as a service, like for mobile phones, with drivers paying to access a network of charging stations. Governments from Australia to Denmark to the San Francisco Bay Area have signed on to create similar networks in their cities.

Renault and Nissan Motor Co Ltd have said they will build electric cars, and mass market availability in Hawaii is expected in 2012. (Reporting by Peter Henderson; Editing by Richard Chang)