Comments (0) Sanyo on August 27 announced trial operation of world’s first solar battery buses in Okayama City, Japan on September 1.
And its name is Solarve (solar vehicle). the use of buses of the roof solar panels to provide solar power drove the car to provide 798W power, and energy storage, the energy supply in cloudy days can last 9 hours. Also support diesel, for redundancy.
Sanyo Electric Co. will increase spending on rechargeable batteries and solar cells to more than $2.13 billion according to Nikkei. The company plans mass production of lithium ion batteries for plug-in hybrids and electric cars by fiscal 2012—and aims to capture 40 percent of the global market for vehicle rechargeable batteries by 2020.
Development of affordable, lightweight rechargeable car batteries—with greater energy storage capacity—is seen as the key to a mass-market for hybrid and electric cars.
In December 2009, Panasonic acquired a majority control of Sanyo for $4.6 billion. The merger created Japan’s second-largest electronics conglomerate—and gave the pair a market share in nickel metal hydride batteries, used in today’s hybrids, of about 80 percent. Panasonic has historically provided batteries for Toyota hybrids, while Sanyo supplied Ford and Honda.
According to a report in Nikkei in Aug. 2009, Toyota will use Sanyo batteries in a hybrid minivan slated to debut in Japan around 2011. Toyota also plans to use lithium ion batteries in a plug-in version of the Prius.
Asian battery companies have also taken a lead in lithium ion battery technology. South Korea’s LG Chem will supply batteries for the Chevy Volt. Japan’s NEC—a strategic partner with Nissan—will produce batteries for the all-electric Leaf sedan.
With devices getting increasingly power-hungry, the last thing one would expect are batteries going lite. However, Sanyo’s strategy of taking its eco-friendly but bacteria-combative Eneloop dry cell down a peg is to produce a version more suited to gadgets that sip energy. Enter Eneloop Lite which targets low energy guzzlers such as alarm clocks and remote controls.
The nickel-metal hydride rechargeable battery will sell in AA (780 yen or US$8.60 for pack of two) and AAA (640 yen for pack of two) sizes. This will yield up to 2,000 recharges and is ready to use out-of-the-box, even after three years in storage. Topups can be done anytime without worrying about memory effect. Sanyo plans a June 22 rollout in Japan, and says it’s aiming for a global release for the battery in the future. Exactly when that will be, however, we’re not yet sure.
Battery News
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Eneloop, lite, Sanyo
Sanyo Electric Co Ltd announced lithium-ion battery modules with capacities increased by connecting some cylindrical lithium-ion secondary battery cells, which are mainly used for notebook PCs.
The “DCB-101″ is aimed at storing electricity for photovoltaic and wind generator systems and back-up power supply systems, and the “EVB-101″ is intended to be used to power electric motorbikes and electric light cars.
Sanyo plans to ship samples from January 2010 and start volume production in March 2010. The sample prices of the DCB-101 and EVB-101 are¥400,000 to 500,000 (approx US$4,464-5,580) and¥150,000 to 200,000, respectively.
The modules use so-called 18650 lithium-ion battery cells (18mm in diameter and 65mm in height), which are commonly used for notebook PCs. Sanyo employed the general-purpose cylindrical battery cells because they have performance and safety proven in the market and can expand the applications of the modules, the company said.
The battery modules can be completely charged and discharged 700 to 1,000 times. Sanyo expects that the costs of the modules can be reduced by volume production.
TOKYO–Sanyo Electric Co. announced a major push into the growing market for auto batteries, with a plan to mass-produce lithium-ion cells for use in plug-in hybrid vehicles from 2011.
Sanyo Electric said it plans to produce 300,000 to 400,000 batteries per month for use in plug-in hybrid vehicles that can be recharged at home. The company also said it will produce battery systems, including rechargers, in the U.S., Europe and China after 2012.
The move comes as Sanyo is trying to cash in on the growing market for auto batteries, as auto makers roll out more fuel-efficient models in response to stronger demand.
Sanyo is the subject of a takeover bid by electronics giant Panasonic Corp., which jointly produces batteries with Toyota Motor Corp. for sole use in the auto giant’s hybrid vehicles. But Sanyo said it expects to offer its batteries to a broader customer base.
“We’ll try to deal with all automakers,” Mitsuru Homma, Sanyo’s executive vice president in charge of global sales and component operations, said at a press conference.
The plan is a step toward Sanyo’s ambitious target of producing 10 million lithium-ion batteries per month for hybrid and plug-in hybrid vehicles by 2015. The company has also said it aims to grab a 40% share of the global markets for lithium-ion and nickel metal hydride batteries by 2020.
In addtion, Sanyo said it is considering building facilities to produce battery systems in Europe, possibly near Germany, as the company will start producing lithium-ion batteries for Volkswagen AG (VOW.XE) later this year. The company also aims to set up facilities in the U.S. and China, it said.
“We want to make (battery systems) in places close to our customers,” said Honma.
The takeover of Sanyo by Panasonic is awaiting approval from the U.S. and Chinese authorities, having already cleared regulatory hurdles in the European Union and Japan.
