In a written reply to a parliamentary question on Wednesday, 23 November 2011, Pandor said that "[t]he projected (yet to be verified) investment required to commercialise the Joule is approximately R9bn." This amount would cover "all production-related matters such as production development, manufacturing and retail operations, to mention but a few," she added.
The battery-driven Joule - developed and designed by the Optimal Energy company - In which the government has a shareholding - is aimed at urban users. It has a maximum range of 300km and a top speed of 135km/h. To date, a few score hand-built Joules have been produced as demonstration models, science and technology Director General Phil Mjwara confirmed to Sapa on Wednesday. Mjwara said that since 2006, the government had invested R125m on the development of the Joule, He denied that planned production of the electric vehicle had stalled.
Discussions were underway between his department, trade and industry and other stakeholders on the best way forward, he said. "At the moment, we're looking at various options... to determine what route we want to go," Mjwara concluded. "These will be tabled early next year." News24 reports that, according to Optimal Energy's website, the Joule will be "in mass manufacture" from 2013, and available for sale in mid-2014.
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