December 16, 2010

The lithium batteries for electric vehicles are very much in the nascent stage

By Planet Wealth

pstrongstrongememLithium/em/em/strong/strong is not much to look at. Itrsquo;s a soft and light, silver-white metal known for its use in mood stabilising drugbr / But the 25th most abundant element on earth could, one day, help cure the world of its addiction to oil mdash; as a key ingredient in strongembatteries/em/strong.br / US geologists last week released the results of a survey showing around a trillion dollars worth of minerals in Afghanistan, which could make the war-ravaged state ldquo;the Saudi Arabia of strongstrongememlithium/em/em/strong/strongrdquo;, according to a Pentagon memo.br / But strongstrongememmining/em/em/strong/strong and technology firms have long been looking at strongstrongememlithium/em/em/strong/strong through eyes lit with dollar signs.br / strongstrongememLithium/em/em/strong/strong-based strongembatteries/em/strong are used in everything from mobile phones and laptops, to iPods and iPads, as well as military and medical hardware. They have even made their way into the human body, powering pacemakers.br / But the main reason strongemcompanies/em/strong are betting on strongstrongememlithium/em/em/strong/strong is the projected explosion in the number of electric and hybrid electric vehicles.br / Nissan, Honda and strongemToyota/em/strong are among car-makers now gambling that electric vehicles, with their zero tailpipe emissions, will catch on and start to drive traditional gas-guzzlers off the road.br / All will need strongembatteries/em/strong. Lots of strongembatteries/em/strong.br / a title=lithium-ion rechargeable batteries href=http://www.3vlithiumbattery.net target=_blankstrongstrongememLithium/em/em/strong/strong-ion rechargeable strongembatteries/em/strong/a, and potentially new strongembatteries/em/strong such as strongstrongememlithium/em/em/strong/strong-air, are seen as the best option by many manufacturers over other battery types as they are lightweight and efficient, and can hold more power.br / Subbu Bettadapura, Malaysia-based associate director of energy research company Frost and Sullivan, says the battery market is set to grow massively.br / The emstronglithium-ion battery/strong/em market for electric and hybrid vehicles is, he says, conservatively-estimated to be set to grow from 2,400 units in 2008 to 1.53 million units by 2015.br / ldquo;The tide is certainly going out on oil, in the long run,rdquo; he told AFP. ldquo;The worldrsquo;s dependence on oil will decline and will be replaced by other fuels, such as strongstrongememlithium/em/em/strong/strong-ion strongembatteries/em/strong.rdquo;br / The US, the worldrsquo;s second largest polluter after China, clearly agrees.br / President Barack Obama has said he wants a million hybrid electric cars on Americalsquo;s roads by 2015.br / And, at a groundbreaking ceremony for a new strongstrongememlithium/em/em/strong/strong-ion battery plant on Monday, Vice President Joe Biden said such factories could reduce US dependence on foreign oil and prevent disasters like the Deepwater Horizon oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico.br / ldquo;This is the beginning of a revolution in the production of energy in the country,rdquo; said Biden at the ceremony for Dow Kokam?s plant in Midland, Michigan, which will make strongembatteries/em/strong for 60,000 electric vehicles a year.br / Japanese, Chinese and South Korean manufacturers dominate the emstronglithium-ion battery/strong/em market, and Asia-Pacific strongstrongememlithium/em/em/strong/strong strongstrongememmining/em/em/strong/strong projects are coming thick and quick.br / Australian strongstrongememmining/em/em/strong/strong firm Orocobre signed a deal in January with the raw materials arm of motor giant strongemToyota/em/strong for a strongstrongememlithium/em/em/strong/strong project in strongemArgentina/em/strong.br / This month, a South Korean consortium launched a a title=lithium stock href=http://www.lithium-stocks.net target=_blankstrongstrongememlithium stock/em/em/strong/strong/a exploration joint-project with a Canadian strongstrongememmining/em/em/strong/strong firm, also in strongemArgentina/em/strong. There are several other deals either signed or in the pipeline.br / The worldrsquo;s largest strongstrongememlithium/em/em/strong/strong reserves lie in Bolivia at the Salar de Uyuni ndash; in the remote southern Andean plane. But Boliviarsquo;s left wing government is not seen as a country friendly to foreign industry, so investment has tended to flow elsewhere mdash; to its South American neighbours.br / Galaxy Resources, an Australian strongstrongememmining/em/em/strong/strong and chemicals company, will soon commission the worldrsquo;s second largest spodumene mdash; a source of raw strongstrongememlithium/em/em/strong/strong mdash; mine in Western Australia, to be processed at its plant in China.br / Oil may have had its day, says Anand Seth, Galaxyrsquo;s marketing chief, but it will be around for a long time yet.br / ldquo;Is it the end of oil? I wish!,rdquo; he told AFP. ldquo;But it is not so simple and probably not in our lifetime.br / ldquo;The strongstrongememlithium/em/em/strong/strong strongembatteries/em/strong for electric vehicles are very much in the nascent stage and the infrastructure to charge these strongembatteries/em/strong needs to be developed and installed.br / ldquo;The next five years will be critical in establishing such infrastructure for recharging the strongembatteries/em/strong and the technology and standardisation of strongembatteries/em/strong is also very vital.rdquo;/p

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