Plenty of car manufacturers are trying to leverage their position and build strategic partnerships in order to meet tomorrow’s electric vehicle, EV demand.
Toyota had announced their desire to make Lithium battery with a joint venture with Matsushita Electric Industrial Co and produce them by 2009. Nissan also announced a similar joint venture with NEC.
And Bosch, although not a car manufacturer per se but very close to the industry, has also jumped the bandwagon with a joint venture with Samsung. What was interesting was Bosch’s CEO commenting on how automakers will not try to keep battery production in house. Even Continental is making plans and will supply packs for Mercedes.
The gist. Bosch’s CEO Bohr feels it will take 10-15 years for lithium batteries to become dominant. He feels this would give Bosch enough time to innovate and compete in this segment. It makes sense given Bosch’s experience in electric tools and engine parts. Bosch expects Lithium batteries’ performance to increase by a factor of 3 to 5 times within those years and become more potent then they are now.
This evens out the playing field between car manufacturers deciding to build in house, others as Bosch leveraging their experience in the electric/electronic industry but what will happen to the independent companies such as Valence Technology and Altair International, both very active in today’s EVs?
It is fascinating watching this industry unfold, shape up, building strategic alliances and it will be equally interesting to see who stays in the game, who will be swallowed into bigger players and who will innovate in the long run.