May 14, 2011

Electric Powertrain Company ALTe Forms Joint Venture with Inmatech, Inc. to Produce Hybrid Electric Storage Devices

May 14, 2011 No Comments

ALTe Powertrain Technologies, the Michigan developer of a range extended electric powertrain, has signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) to form a joint venture with Inmatech, Inc., a leading developer of advanced supercapacitors, to produce and sell hybrid electric storage (HES) devices composed of batteries, supercapacitors and control electronics. The blend of supercapacitors with lithium ion battery cells will enable longer life for the battery cells while reducing cost by as much as 40% for an equivalent size battery composed exclusively of lithium ion cells. The applications will range from automotive batteries to stationary grid power leveling devices.
By combining key competencies of both companies, the joint venture will enable quick market penetration with a leading performance product at significantly reduced cost, providing robust technology in ALTe’s plug-in hybrid electric powertrain kits while allowing the joint venture to provide HES devices to the automotive and grid infrastructure markets.

Canadian Rights: Environmental Protections From Oil Spills

May 14, 2011 No Comments

Source: Global Exchange & Council of Canadians
Under the shadow of the one year anniversary of the BP oil disaster in the Gulf, the UN General Assembly will discuss implementing new international standards that afford rights and legal standing not just to individuals and businesses adversely affected by the exploitation and damage to natural resources, but to nature and ecosystems themselves. The discussion follows the adoption into law of similar protocols by over a dozen American municipalities as well as into the federal laws in Bolivia and Ecuador.
“Today’s environmental laws place commerce above nature, and in so doing they legalize harm to ecosystems,” said Shannon Biggs, Director of the Community Rights Program the NGO Global Exchange and author of Building the Green Economy: Success Stories from the Grassroots. “We see communities across the world, including in the United States, taking action to change this model in recognition of the Rights of Nature and to protect our environment, our communities and our future. This week’s dialogue at the UN recognizes the Rights of Nature at another, important level.”