We're glad the growing excitement about PHEVs is sparking independently developed proposals. TSAugust describes itself as skeptical of global warming and environmentalism, pro-nuclear power, and a strong supporter of plug-in hybrids. It was founded by a retired executive who was a senior manager at General Electric for 35 years. (The business model of separating car ownership and leased batteries has been tried in small projects in Europe. And should the batteries be cheaper by a factor of two or three, this program's cost would of course decline considerably.)

http://www.tsaugust.org/­Weekly_News.htm#PHEV's

TSAugust Announces Plan for Affordable PHEV's.

near future will leave economic viability the remaining hurdle for PHEV's to become readily available for widespread use.

The $10,000 cost of the PHEV battery, when added to the base price of the car, makes the first cost a huge hurdle for the average consumer.

TSAugust proposed that a leasing corporation be established as a public-private partnership to lease batteries at a monthly rate approximately equal to the monthly cost of gasoline saved by the PHEV.

For the average consumer the cost of leasing the battery would be offset by the savings from using less gasoline.

It is believed that PHEV's can achieve over 100 mpg of gasoline by using the battery to power the car for up to 60 miles each day, with the battery recharged nightly by plugging the car into a standard 120 volt outlet-every home becomes a battery recharging station.

The public-private partnership allows the government to provide for the huge investment in batteries, perhaps several billion dollars by 2025, while allowing a private company or consortium an opportunity to acquire the government's share after the company is established: In the interim, the government would be paid interest on the money it invests.

This proposal would allow PHEV's to become a major component in the nation's strategy for achieving independence from foreign oil.

For a copy of the proposal, click here.

About TS August TSAugust is an acronym for "The Second of August".

August 2nd, 1776 was the day most delegates signed the Declaration of Independence. These were patriots who believed in the country they were about to establish. Many of the delegates were farmers or landowners who viewed nature as a resource to be used and protected. Many were business people who understood the importance of commerce and economic development.

They were students of ancient and modern history: They risked their lives to establish a government based on historical experiences, so that citizens would be free and ruled by laws that protected them from an over zealous government, from their fellow citizens and from foreign threats.

We have adopted TSAugust for our name so as to capture the ideas of patriotism, rights and responsibilities inherent in the work of our founding fathers: These are the principles that will guide our efforts

Mission

The mission of TSAugust is to develop, promote and support a comprehensive educational program based upon scientific study and economic analysis for the advancement of economic growth and conservation, so as to ensure increasingly high living standards and the elimination of poverty wherever it exists.

Donn D. Dears is a retired senior executive with extensive management, marketing, manufacturing and strategic planning experience, including domestic and international operations. He lives in Reston Virginia where he was elected to two terms on the Board of Directors of this 60,000 person community. Donn graduated from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy with a BS degree (with honors) majoring in engineering.