VW plans Varta tie-up on batteries
FRANKFURT, GERMANY - Volkswagen is setting up a joint venture with Varta Microbattery GmbH to develop more powerful batteries for use in electric cars, Europe's biggest carmaker said.
It said the project aims to undertake research and development of lithium-ion batteries that would be more competitive in terms of technology and price.
The four-year project still needed approval by the German Cartel Office.
Volkswagen, which wants to launch the first electric car by 2013, presented a prototype of the e-UP! model at the Frankfurt Car Show this month.
VW already works with Japan's Toshiba and Sanyo as well as with China's BYD on battery technology.
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Its Electric Grid Under Strain, California Turns to Batteries
LOS ANGELES - Last month as a heat wave slammed California, state regulators sent an email to a group of energy executives pleading for help. “Please consider this an urgent inquiry on behalf of the state,” the message said.
The manager of the state’s grid was struggling to increase the supply of electricity because power plants had unexpectedly shut down and demand was surging. The imbalance was forcing officials to order rolling blackouts across the state for the first time in nearly two decades.
What was unusual about the emails was whom they were sent to: people who managed thousands of batteries…
