February 2009

around the industry

Quallion Receives Contract for Backup Power Supply

Quallion LLC of Sylmar, California, was recently awarded a contract from The Boeing Company to retrofit the emergency battery power supply for the C-17 Globemaster III. Quallion will replace the legacy backup system for the military-transport aircraft.

"Lithium-ion batteries are attracting new interest for their ability to help aircraft manufacturers achieve substantial savings in weight and maintenance costs," says Paul Beach, Quallion's senior executive vice president.

Quallion was founded in 1998 by biotechnology and aerospace entrepreneur Alfred E. Mann and lithium-ion battery specialist Dr. Hisashi Tsukamoto. It began as a medical device battery company and soon developed the world's smallest implantable secondary battery as well as its Zero-Volt™ and SaFE-LYTE™ technologies. The company expanded into the aerospace, military and automotive industries by focusing on niche applications where advanced battery technology, safety, reliability and custom engineering are most valued. Quallion's services include designing, fabricating and manufacturing cells and battery packs and developing new battery chemistries.

Ener1 Expands Relationship with Japanese Partner

Ener1 Inc. of New York, New York, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with ITOCHU Corp., a global trading company that distributes specialized equipment and materials to produce lithium-ion battery cells. ITOCHU, which has strategic partnerships and equity ownership in the Japanese automotive manufacturing community, will serve as Ener1's Japanese sales, marketing and development partner for automotive OEMs and tier one suppliers.

The agreement also sets the stage for ITOCHU to introduce Ener1's batteries as an energy storage solution to the solar power market. Ener1 currently has the capacity to produce large-format automotive lithium-ion batteries on a commercial scale and the manufacturing footprint to produce batteries to store 1.17MWh of electricity annually with plans to expand that output to 3.12MWh. The MOU contemplates ITOCHU's possible extension of an equipment line of credit to Ener1 to fund an expansion.

Valence Signs Supply Agreement with PVI

Valence Technology Inc. of Austin, Texas, has entered into a multi-year non-exclusive supply agreement with PVI for U-Charge® XP Energy Storage Systems. PVI develops and manufactures electric buses with the GEPEBUS brand and trucks in partnership with Renault Trucks.

Under the agreement, Valence will provide lithium phosphate battery systems and engineering support to power four commercial EV platforms. Valence will begin shipments to PVI in the fourth quarter of this year. Based on PVI projections, revenue for Valence from this supply agreement could represent $3 million in 2010.

PVI and Renault Trucks recently announced an agreement to develop concept trucks and demonstrators of light commercial electric vehicles, including an all-electric version of the Maxity. The first demonstrator will be powered by Valence lithium phosphate batteries.

Michigan Vying to Become Electric-Car Power

Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm recently signed legislation offering tax credits for advanced battery makers to attract one of the fastest-growing sectors in the auto industry to the state of Michigan. "We want Michigan to be positioned as the battery capitol of the world," Granholm told reporters at the North American International Auto Show just before signing the bill offering up to $335 million in refundable tax credits.

In addition to the tax credits, Granholm is trying to nurture the development of advanced battery manufacturing by selecting and funding centers of energy excellence projects around certain companies, such as A123 Systems. TOP

Posawatz Becomes EDTA Co-Chairman

The board of directors of the Electric Drive Transportation Association (EDTA) has elected Tony Posawatz, General Motor's vehicle line director for the Chevy Volt, as co-chairman of the board. He will serve alongside co-chairman John Bryson, retired chairman and CEO of Southern California Edison, and senior advisor for Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co.

Posawatz replaces Edward B. Cohen, vice president of government and industry relations for American Honda Motor Co., who has served as co-chairman since early 2004. Cohen remains on the EDTA board.

EDTA is the trade association accelerating battery, hybrid, plug-in, and fuel cell electric drive technologies and infrastructure. Its members include automotive and other equipment manufacturers, energy companies, technology developers and component suppliers.

PowerGenix Appoints New CFO

PowerGenix of San Diego, California, has appointed John Creelman as chief financial officer (CFO). He joins the company following the closing of a $30 million Series D funding round, as well as a recent agreement to supply Ritz Camera with rechargeable NiZn AA batteries.

With more than 20 years of financial management experience, Creelman has played lead roles in raising more than $260 million in combined debt, private placements venture capital and two public equity (IPO) offerings. Previously he served as CFO for ID Analytics and as CFO for Copper Mountain Networks, where he managed that company's annual revenue growth from $211,000 in 1997 to over $280 million in 2000 and led their IPO. He also held senior financial management positions with Western Digital Corp. and MTI Technology.

Creelman has a BA and MBA from University of California at Irvine.

New Battery Factory for Toshiba

Toshiba Corp. plans to build a new factory in northwest Japan to boost production of rechargeable lithium-ion batteries for hybrid and electric vehicles.

The company says its new Li-ion batteries are safer than existing batteries, can be quickly recharged, and offer 10 years of continual use with a daily recharge. It calls the new type of battery Super Charge ion Battery, or SCiB, and began shipping units in April.

The plant will begin production in late 2010 and will increase the company's manufacturing capacity to several million cells per month from its current 150,000 cells, according to spokeswoman Hiroko Mochida. The company plans to invest "several tens of billions of yen" in the plant, she says. The Nikkei business newspaper reported the cost would be between ¥20 billion and ¥30 billion ($220 million ‚ $330 million).

East Penn and Nuvera Provide Forklift Units

East Penn Manufacturing of Lyon Station, Pennsylvania, and Nuvera Fuel Cells of Billerica, Massachusetts, have supplied and deployed 20 ReadyPower™ units to the Susquehanna Defense Distribution Supply Depot (DDSP) in New Cumberland, Pennsylvania. The fuel cell/battery hybrid units have been installed into 20 Yale forklift trucks as part of a two-year demonstration project run by the Defense Logistics Agency. The ReadyPower units will be run at the DDSP in regular operation consisting of two shifts a day, five days a week, and will be compared to the performance that would have been attained using standard motive batteries.

ReadyPower is a hybrid pack consisting of a fuel cell power module, AGM batteries, and a compressed hydrogen fuel storage system. The unit is completely interchangeable with standard lead-acid forklift batteries, and is a high-powered, time-saving, cost-effective alternative for the right motive power application. TOP

Prelonic Makes Display-Battery Module

Prelonic Technologies OG of Linz, Austria, a printed electronics startup formed in 2007, has built prototype samples of display-battery modules created by printing on a single substrate.

The display-batteries are produced via screen printing on polyethylene terephthalate film (PET film), which is as thin as paper. The company says the prototypes will be the basis of a market entry in 2009 with a product that can provide a flexible active display with integrated push-button for activation and the required battery.

"Such modules can operate as stand-alone applications in marketing material, greeting cards or gaming cards," said Friedrich Eibensteiner, CEO of Prelonic in a statement. "We are able to offer these modules in large quantities at reasonably low prices. First, we are going to launch some test products to explore and investigate different applications and markets."

Printed batteries and simple printed displays have been possible for years but mass adoption has been inhibited by the need to integrate different components together.

Boston Power Receives $55 Million in Funding

Boston Power of Westborough, Massachusetts, maker of eco-friendly, long-lasting Li-ion batteries, just landed $55 million in fourth-round funding to grow its manufacturing, sales and marketing operations. Its flagship product, the Sonata Li-ion battery, is slated to launch in the next several months as the primary power source for Hewlett-Packard notebook computers. The model is also currently being adapted for use in other electronic devices and electric vehicles, the company says.

According to CNET, Sonata batteries can be charged 1,000 times before their run-time starts to shrink, and can also be charged to 80% capacity in a half hour. In order to make a more environmentally sustainable product, Boston Power has eliminated typical battery ingredients cadmium, arsenic and mercury.

The recent investment round came from Foundation Asset Management, Oak Investment Partners, Venrock, GGV Capital and Gabriel Venture Partners. This brings Boston Power's total capital raised since its inception in 2005 to $125 million.