AZEqualizer
12-18-2008, 06:52 PM
The Wall Street Journal (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122957206516817419.html)(subscription required) had this to report:
http://blogs.edmunds.com/greencaradvisor/Volt-Battery-Pack.jpg
By REBECCA SMITH (http://online.wsj.com/search/search_center.html?KEYWORDS=REBECCA+SMITH&ARTICLESEARCHQUERY_PARSER=bylineAND)
Fourteen U.S. technology companies are joining forces and seeking $1 billion in federal aid to build a plant to make advanced batteries for electric cars, in a bid to catch up to Asian rivals that are far ahead of the U.S.
The effort, the latest pitch from corporate America to inject federal dollars into a project, is similar to an alliance that two decades ago helped the U.S. computer-chip industry restore its competitiveness. Participants include 3M (http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=mmm) Corp. and Johnson Controls (http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=jci) Inc.
Many experts believe battery technology and manufacturing capacity could become as strategically important as oil is today. Auto makers, including General Motors (http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=gm) Corp. and Ford Motor (http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=f) Co., say they plan to roll out plug-in electric cars by 2010. But the U.S. has limited capacity to make the lithium-ion batteries those cars will need. Asian producers such as Panasonic (http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=6752.TO) Corp. dominate the car-battery field.
Federal energy laboratories, including the Argonne National Lab, are advising the alliance, and more companies are expected to join. Together, the consortium members estimate the plan to build the first large-scale lithium-ion battery plant in the U.S. could cost $1 billion to $2 billion.
Experts say the plan faces several hurdles, including its high cost and the fact the U.S. has lost the lead in battery manufacturing.
Ralph Brodd, a Nevada-based energy-storage consultant, recently published a report on battery manufacturing for the National Institute of Standards and Technology. He said that though much of the advanced battery technology was developed in the U.S., American companies "opted out" of battery production because of the low returns the business offered. Asian manufacturers picked up the business because of their proximity to makers of electronic devices, which need a steady supply of batteries.
Mr. Brodd said American companies now face significant hurdles in regaining lost ground, including the preference by Asian car makers to use Asian-made batteries in their hybrid models. However, he said U.S. concerns could leap ahead if they developed the right technologies.
"If you manufacture everything in China, you lose control of the technology," Mr. Brodd said.
The consortium's plant would make battery cells of various chemistries and sizes for the consortium companies. Members would turn the output into finished batteries by adding their own proprietary electronics, which would control factors such as operating temperature and voltage, and package the batteries to fit specific products.
The consortium intends to solicit as much as $1 billion in federal funds from the Obama administration by tapping loan guarantees contained in an energy-security act passed last year. The act pledges as much as $7 billion in loan guarantees for advanced-battery plants in the U.S. The focus is to produce jobs and create a domestic supply chain, and the factories need not be owned by U.S. companies.
http://blogs.edmunds.com/greencaradvisor/Volt-Battery-Pack.jpg
By REBECCA SMITH (http://online.wsj.com/search/search_center.html?KEYWORDS=REBECCA+SMITH&ARTICLESEARCHQUERY_PARSER=bylineAND)
Fourteen U.S. technology companies are joining forces and seeking $1 billion in federal aid to build a plant to make advanced batteries for electric cars, in a bid to catch up to Asian rivals that are far ahead of the U.S.
The effort, the latest pitch from corporate America to inject federal dollars into a project, is similar to an alliance that two decades ago helped the U.S. computer-chip industry restore its competitiveness. Participants include 3M (http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=mmm) Corp. and Johnson Controls (http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=jci) Inc.
Many experts believe battery technology and manufacturing capacity could become as strategically important as oil is today. Auto makers, including General Motors (http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=gm) Corp. and Ford Motor (http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=f) Co., say they plan to roll out plug-in electric cars by 2010. But the U.S. has limited capacity to make the lithium-ion batteries those cars will need. Asian producers such as Panasonic (http://online.wsj.com/public/quotes/main.html?type=djn&symbol=6752.TO) Corp. dominate the car-battery field.
Federal energy laboratories, including the Argonne National Lab, are advising the alliance, and more companies are expected to join. Together, the consortium members estimate the plan to build the first large-scale lithium-ion battery plant in the U.S. could cost $1 billion to $2 billion.
Experts say the plan faces several hurdles, including its high cost and the fact the U.S. has lost the lead in battery manufacturing.
Ralph Brodd, a Nevada-based energy-storage consultant, recently published a report on battery manufacturing for the National Institute of Standards and Technology. He said that though much of the advanced battery technology was developed in the U.S., American companies "opted out" of battery production because of the low returns the business offered. Asian manufacturers picked up the business because of their proximity to makers of electronic devices, which need a steady supply of batteries.
Mr. Brodd said American companies now face significant hurdles in regaining lost ground, including the preference by Asian car makers to use Asian-made batteries in their hybrid models. However, he said U.S. concerns could leap ahead if they developed the right technologies.
"If you manufacture everything in China, you lose control of the technology," Mr. Brodd said.
The consortium's plant would make battery cells of various chemistries and sizes for the consortium companies. Members would turn the output into finished batteries by adding their own proprietary electronics, which would control factors such as operating temperature and voltage, and package the batteries to fit specific products.
The consortium intends to solicit as much as $1 billion in federal funds from the Obama administration by tapping loan guarantees contained in an energy-security act passed last year. The act pledges as much as $7 billion in loan guarantees for advanced-battery plants in the U.S. The focus is to produce jobs and create a domestic supply chain, and the factories need not be owned by U.S. companies.