EEStor CEO Tells All in Leaked Phone Call

[tinrobot]

In what appears to be a huge leak, the notoriously secretive Dick Weir of Eestor did a phone call with someone that got out, copied, transcribed and put up on TheEEStory.com.

We have been losing hope that the eeStor ultracap would ever arrive, but it appears that a car that charges in minutes and runs for hours, a wind turbine that stores its own energy, notebook computers and cellphones that charge in seconds and run for days could be months, not years, away.

Tyler Hamilton of Clean Break, who has spoken to Weir a few times, confirms that it is his voice. He also does a great summary of the conversation.

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/07/eestor-speaks-huge-leak.php

Here's the transcript:

http://theeestory.com/topics/2529

---

Highlights :

The supercapacitors can be produced cheaply with off the shelf hardware.

Projected price is $100-150/KWh

They will be UL listed (i.e. very safe)

Will be producing prototypes in volume by Q4 of this year.

[wtmusic]

1. Skeptical.

The best ultracap has an energy density of about 1/7 that of a lead-acid battery by mass, or .02 MJ/kg, and EEStor has been a notorious hype factory in the past. These "leaks" are usually calculated to drive stock prices up (in this case of Zenn Motor Company).

[Nihil]

2. You're not the only one.

>> In what appears to be a huge leak, the notoriously secretive Dick Weir
>> of Eestor did a phone call with someone that got out, copied, transcribed
>> and put up on TheEEStory.com.

Gosh really? What a fortunate series of coincidental good luck events!

Somewhat like a c-list actress flashing her tits at the photographers
and claiming that it was "a wardrobe malfunction" whilst being seen in
all the glossy magazines for the first time in years ...

:shrug:

[phantom power]

3. +1

[hunter]

4. This one is more of an "oops, short skirt, no underwear."

A year or two from now the company will be successful or they will morph into a creepy guy wearing a dirty trench coat flashing old women in the park.

[TheWraith]

5. BING BING BING BING!

How conveeeeenient. For someone.

[skids]

6. I gotta say, if it's a hoax...

...it has been expertly played. The technical detail has been well
thought out, blog criticisms have been surveyed and addressed, but not
directly, and most of the information they "let out" is done in a way
that makes it seem like they didn't intend to, or meant to address a
particular topic when actually it was planted for another purpose.

Almost none of the grandstanding that usually serves as a tip-off.

I'm still not convinced one way or another. There's really no way to
know given what facts can be really called facts. If it is for real it's good
to see that they value outsourcing to exploit existing business relationships,
e.g. the defense contracting.

That would mean that small companies that one might expect to see "squashed"
by a disruptive technology are probably going to have an opportunity to
wind up as partners using their industry knowhow to integrate it into
industry subsectors -- for example people smoothing wind power or working on
grid stabilization might be tapped for knowing the ins and outs of ISO
certification and permitting.

If it's a hoax, then well, that stuff happens, but I'm a bit disturbed
that people talented enough to create a technical hoax on this level aren't
applying their talents more constructuvely.

[IDemo]

7. I'll give them the benefit of the doubt

They have had millions in investments from Lockheed Martin and Zenn Motor:

http://cleantech.com/news/2644/zenn-gearing-up-for-eestor-powered-car
Bethesda, Md.-based Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) announced that it signed a deal with EEStor to use the secretive Ceder Park, Texas, company's ultracapacitors for military and homeland security applications.

http://cleantech.com/news/3174/eestors-weir-speaks-about-ultracapacitor-milestone
Toronto-based electric vehicle maker Zenn Motor (TSX: ZNN) says it's moving forward with plans for a highway speed vehicle to be powered by EEStor in Cedar Park, Texas, announcing plans to roll out the new cars in the fall of 2009.

I have to say though, Weir's style reminds me of the folks behind an energy scam that was all the rage on the internet a few years ago -> http://www.matr.net/article-5090.html