Lithium battery for many vehicles seen a ways off

ARGONNE NATIONAL LABORATORY, Illinois (Reuters) – Vast improvements are needed to extend the life and lower the cost of lithium batteries before they can efficiently power vehicles, a U.S. government official who tracks high-power battery development said on Monday.

Lithium-ion batteries are widely predicted to replace nickel metal-hydride batteries currently used in most hybrid vehicles, such as Toyota Co’s hot-selling Prius.

But among the challenges to overcome are extending the life of high-power lithium batteries and bringing down their relatively high cost, Tien Duong of the U.S. Department of Energy said on the sidelines of a lithium battery conference held at this government laboratory.

“Life means 10 years, plus. For hybrids we know (their batteries) last 10 years plus. For the PHEV (plug-in electric vehicle), we don’t know,” Duong said. He did not specify what the costs should be.

Reuters