Las Vegas-based Enigma Energy charged up for electric cars

Eric Mims is on the forefront of changing the way we drive -- or at least what we drive.

The chief executive officer of Las Vegas-based Enigma Energy plans to open the first all-electric car dealership in Nevada and develop a network of 500 solar-powered recharging stations throughout the state.

The company is advertising electric "super cars" on a banner at the Desert Dodge dealership at 4701 W. Sahara Ave. that closed in 2009.

Enigma Energy is in escrow to purchase the 5.5-acre site, which is still owned by Desert Dodge. The last sale price was $8.8 million in January 2003, according to Clark County Assessor records.

"We're going to be opening a dealership, but we're more focused right now on the charging stations than the dealership," Mims said Thursday. "We want to wait until we get everything handled so when we do come out, we've got something to crow about."

Enigma Energy is in the business of producing clean-energy solutions, the company's web site (enigmaenergylv.com) said. It also manufactures motor vehicles and car bodies.

The company wants to put electric vehicles on the road that everyone can afford and to develop a network of charging stations to support electric vehicle use.

Mims said the company was working with BYD Auto, a Chinese manufacturer of electric vehicles, but has since "changed direction" and is now talking to two U.S. car manufacturers about bringing their cars to the Las Vegas dealership.

Eventually, Enigma Energy would manufacture its own quick-charging electric "super cars" capable of higher speeds. The cost of the car would be somewhere near other hybrid vehicles after rebates from the state and federal government, Mims said. The popular Toyota Prius hybrid sells for about $26,000.

Enigma Energy would hire about 5,000 to 13,000 people for full-time, permanent jobs at 500 charging stations in Nevada, along with construction and remodeling work, Mims said.

"It's coming along pretty good," he said. "We should have the dealership up and running by December. We'll be selling cars before the charging station will be operational."

Enigma Energy, founded in 2008, has annual sales under $500,000 in the motors and generators industry and employs between 20 and 50 people, according to a company profile on Cortera.com.

Business development director Larry Tyler said he fields three to four calls a week from companies wanting to do business with Enigma Energy. The company will handle its own financing, he said.

Larry Carroll of Poggemeyer Design in Las Vegas said his firm will be assisting with the design and engineering aspects of the vacant facility on Sahara.

It'll be both an electric car dealership and recharging station, Carroll said.

"I think it's the wave of the future," he said. "Hopefully we'll have these on every corner in Las Vegas replacing gas stations. I think these guys have the foresight that everyone wants to be green and vehicles are certainly the first thing to look at. The technology is here, but getting the basic infrastructure in place -- the charging stations -- is the challenge."

Contact reporter Hubble Smith at hsmith@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0491.