Project Better Place continues to build momentum, as the maker of electric cars, has signed up 19 Israeli companies to test the suitability of running their car fleets with electric cars.

According to Globes: “The participating companies cover the gamut of Israeli industry, from high tech to telecommunications, pharmaceuticals, finance, manufacturing, agriculture, and juice. They include Israel Corporation (TASE: ILCO), which has invested heavily in the venture, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (Nasdaq: TEVA; TASE: TEVA), Pelephone Communications Ltd., Partner Communications Ltd. (Nasdaq: PTNR; TASE: PTNR), Matrix IT Ltd. (TASE:MTRX), Direct Insurance - Financial Investments Ltd. (TASE: DIFI), Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd., Netafim Ltd., Keter Plastics Ltd., Orbotech Ltd. (Nasdaq: ORBK), juice maker Jafora Tabori Ltd., Manpower Israel Ltd., SQlink Ltd., Nike Israel Ltd., and Glasshouse Technologies Ltd. Better Place will begin designing the recharging points for the companies’ electric cars and install them at the companies’ parking lots and employees’ homes. It will also work with the companies’ managers and employees in the design and deployment of the infrastructure in order to optimize and customize them to the needs of each company.

Even if it works, the question still remains whether consumers are going to spend more money on an electric car? Also without massive government subsidies, how high will the price of these cars go?

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Telecommunications equipment company Nortel Networks (NT) bankruptcy filing is not just a story about a fallen hi-tech angel, rather will have broad based impact on the Israeli technology scene. The company has a large operation in Israel employing many workers and many Israeli telecom’s use the Nortel platform.

Globes reports: “Pele-Phone Communications Ltd. chose Nortel to operate its CDMA network. Partner Communications Ltd. (Nasdaq: PTNR chose to implement a Nortel UMTS network. Most of Bezeq The Israeli Telecommunication Co. Ltd.’s (TASE: BEZQ) voice communications infrastructure is based on Nortel DMS solutions, and most Cellcom Israel Ltd. (NYSE:CEL) subscribers use Nortel’s wireless infrastructure. Nortel is also the major supplier for voice communications infrastructure to the Ministry of Defense.”

It will be interesting to see how the bankruptcy plays out.

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