Honda, GS Yuasa JV to make lithium-ion batteries for 2010/2011 Honda Civic Hybrid

greencarcongress.com :
The Nikkei reports that Blue Energy Co, the newly-formed joint venture between Honda and GS Yuasa will begin mass-producing high-performance lithium ion batteries for hybrid vehicles in the spring of 2011. This 51-49 joint venture of Yuasa and Honda is expected to start building a lithium ion battery plant this month at Yuasa's Osadano plant, in Kyoto Prefecture, at an estimated initial cost of 10 billion yen [US$100 million] or so. The production is expected to begin at a level sufficient for 100,000 vehicles a year. Honda plans to start using lithium ion batteries with the 2010/2011 Honda Civic Hybrid.
- Thanks to greencarcongress.com for the heads-up, though some details are scarce at this point in time, and I'm not quite sure on the date or year (2010? 2011?) of the next version of the Honda Civic Hybrid as well. But it is starting to look like Honda is getting serious about adopting lithium-ion battery technology for its next generation of hybrid vehicles.
I hope to see the questions that need to be raised being answerered in time. Questions on factors such as safety, reliabity, longevity, price, temperature response and so on. Another point to note is that apparently the Japanese players (Nissan, Toyota and now Honda) are going their own way, perhaps on a divergent path from the Americans (A123Systems, Chevrolet) in this nascent field of lithium-ion hybrid batteries. We'll see how things turn out.
Update #1 : Okay so I missed the earlier announcement with some of the details :
GS Yuasa 6Ah-class prismatic Li-ion EH6 cell ... the new venture will explore modifying the cathode materials and cell structure to optimize performance for next-generation hybrid vehicles. The EH6 ... is a 3.7V, 6Ah cell with a LiNiCoMnO2 cathode and carbon anode. Specific energy for the cell is 67.1 Wh kg-1 ... the cell can provide 10 seconds of boost power at 50% SOC of 1.2 kW (3,600 W kg at 25° C).
Update #2 : Some info about low-temperature response :
It has excellent low-temperature characteristics, maintaining 90% capacity even at -30*C.
Update #3 : And some more info on safety and longevity, and probably a little bit more than you or I have ever wanted to know about SOC measurement, calibration, and data acquisition chips :
The safety of Li-ion was a concern, but new battery technologies like the A123 nanophosphate cell, the EnerDel Spinel-Titanate chemistry, the GS Yuasa EH6 design and others are as safe as NiMh, offer extremely high power (200A peak discharge rates), and last 10 to 15 years with proper charge management. By model year 2012, the majority of hybrid cars and trucks will use lithium battery technology.
It's assuring to see that this Yuasa EH6 battery is being mentioned in the same sentence as A123Systems' nanotech cell. I would like to see more data to be sure, but if this means that the next generation of lithium-ion hybrid batteries from the Japanese could be as competitive as those from the Americans, then I probably wouldn't need to worry about having to switch away from my preferred brand :)
See also :
1. 2010 Honda Civic Hybrid preliminary specifications released
2. 2010 Honda Insight specifications released : 41 mpg, 1.3L, 98hp, i-VTEC, CVT
3. 2010 Honda Insight hybrid concept to debut at 2008 Paris International Auto Show