Wednesday April 25, 2007

Nissan, NEC to make hybrid batteries

news.yahoo.com :

Nissan is tying up with Japanese electronics maker NEC in producing batteries for ecological vehicles, an official said, signaling efforts to catch up with rival automakers that have a head start in green technology. Nissan has fallen behind Japanese rivals Toyota and Honda in developing hybrids and other ecological technologies that reduce gas emissions blamed for global warming.

Nissan has started selling hybrid cars, including the Altima, but licenses the technology from Toyota. Although sales of hybrids and cars boasting other environmentally friendly technology are still a fraction of standard models, both Toyota and Honda have seen their brand image improve from promoting such advances, such as the Toyota Prius and Honda Civic hybrids.

The Nikkei said the joint venture will center around lithium-ion batteries, common in gadgets such as laptops and cell phones but have yet to be fully adapted to the more rigorous demands of a car engine. Hybrids from Toyota and Honda use nickel-metal hydride batteries, although automakers, including General Motors, are working on lithium-ion batteries for vehicles.

See also :

1. A123Systems receives $30m funding to develop hybrid Li-Ion batteries
2. Sanyo, VW to co-develop hybrid batteries
3. GM sells assets to Toyota

(2007-04-25 14:45:47 SGT) [Energy] Permalink

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