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USABC Issues RFP and Goals for Advanced Battery Development for Plug-in Electric Vehicles
SOUTHFIELD, Mich., April 5, 2007 – The United States Advanced Battery Consortium (USABC), composed of DaimlerChrysler Corporation, Ford Motor Company and General Motors Corporation, today (April 5) issued a request for proposals for advanced high-performance battery development for plug-in hybrid-electric vehicle (PHEV) applications. In collaboration with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), USABC will award contracts to developers selected that have electrochemical energy storage technologies capable of meeting or approaching USABC’s performance, weight, life-cycle and price criteria, plus near- and long-term technical readiness goals for high power-to-energy-ratio and high energy-to-power-ratio batteries, respectively. The USABC solicitation is part of the DOE’s FreedomCAR and Vehicle Technologies Program and is part of a cost-shared solicitation for PHEV battery development announced earlier this year by U.S. DOE Assistant Secretary of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Alexander Karsner. The RFP submission deadline is Thursday, May 31, 2007. “Developing commercially viable advanced batteries for plug-in hybrid-electric vehicle applications is a logical extension of the work already underway through the U.S. Advanced Battery Consortium,” said Don Walkowicz, executive director of the United States Council for Automotive Research (USCAR). “Recently, there’s been a lot of public attention given to plug-ins, for which advanced batteries are the key enabler. The U.S. automakers, through USABC, are the right group to lead this collaborative research with the federal government and automotive supply base.” USABC is a consortium of the USCAR. Supported by a cooperative agreement with the DOE that provides up to 50 percent of the USABC budget, USABC’s mission is to develop electrochemical energy storage technologies that support commercialization of fuel cell, hybrid and electric vehicles. The U.S. DOE's overarching mission is to advance the national, economic and energy security of the United States. DOE’s Office of FreedomCAR and Vehicle Technologies works with industry to develop advanced transportation technologies that reduce the nation's use of imported oil and increase our energy security. Electrochemical energy storage has been identified as a critical enabling technology for advanced, fuel-efficient, light and heavy duty vehicles. Founded in 1992, the United States Council for Automotive Research (USCAR) is the umbrella organization for collaborative research among DaimlerChrysler, Ford and GM. The goal of USCAR is to further strengthen the technology base of the domestic auto industry through cooperative research and development. For more information and complete RFP information, visit the USABC page of USCAR’s Web site at http://www.uscar.org/guest/article_view.php?articles_id=87. April 5, 2007 Click here to download this release as a Word document |
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