A Californian company has unveiled the world's fastest production electric motorbike, the Mission One.
The bike's history has echoes of Tesla Motors' Roadster, the luxury electric sports car that was conceived, designed and built in California with funding from clean technology investors including Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin.
Mission Motors' founder, Forrest North, is a former Tesla employee who, in 2007, began work on converting a petrol-powered Ducati motorbike into an electric model, with the aspiration of combining the performance of petrol with zero exhaust pipe emissions.
"As a motorcycle enthusiast and engineer, I knew I could combine my passion for motorcycles with my passion for innovation and create a motorcycle that truly sets a new standard in the perception of electric vehicles," North said at the bike's launch at the TED conference in Long Beach, California.
North's bike is powered by lithium-ion batteries - the type found in laptops and mobile phones - and will reportedly run for 150 miles between recharging, which takes two hours.
The model demonstrated was a hand-built prototype. It is yet to be tested on the road at 150mph, but a Mission Motors' spokesman said they "have no doubt that this prototype will achieve its target speed".
Tesla and Mission Motors are targeting affluent green motorists, with the Tesla selling for £92,000 in the UK and the first 50 limited-edition Mission Ones likely to sell for $68,995 (£47,100). A cheaper version of the Mission One is due to be announced this summer.
UK bikers and electric vehicle fans will get their first glimpse of the Mission One at this summer's TTXGP, a motorbike race on the Isle of Man that bills itself as the world's first clean emissions grand prix. "Mission are really breaking the barrier on speed, and they also have a team of people that has a lot of experience in electric vehicles," said Azhar Hussain, TTXGP's founder.
Most of today's electric motorbikes in the UK are effectively scooters limited to speeds of 60mph or below, such as the high-end Vectrix VX-1 and budget Ego Street Scoota.
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