The Eaton Corporation, which manufactures hybrid drive trains for truck manufacturers like Freightliner, Kenworth, and Navistar, has announced a lithium ion battery supply deal with LG Chem. The news means that the same Holland, Mich. Compact Power plant that will produce battery packs for the Chevy Volt and Ford Focus EV will also have at least a third client. Eaton is planning a forthcoming electric drive system, though details and deployment of the project are still unknown.
Despite predictions in a recent Goldman Sachs advanced battery forecast that the next few years would see a rush toward supply centralization, battery manufacturers and carmakers seem content to maintain a tangled web of relationships. “To succeed longer term,” said Goldman, “we think domestic battery companies must build strong OEM alliances… Alliances will provide initial technology validation and largely determine each company’s ability to win volume production contracts.”
LG Chem currently counts four different carmakers among its clients—including Ford, Chevy, Hyundai, and now Eaton—while A123 systems has seven. In addition to LG, Ford and Chevy have relationships with Johnson Controls and Hitachi, respectively. BMW currently has agreements with both Johnson Controls and A123. (If you think that’s confusing, just try untangling the capital investment stakes that various automakers have in battery companies and vice-versa.)
Read more at
Source: plugincars.com
Related posts:
- Korea/Europe: LG Chem to Supply Volvo with Li-ion Battery Packs
- Korea/USA: LG Chem to Supply Batteries to US Firm
- USA: A123 Systems In Battery Supply Pact With Fisker Automotive
- Obama Attends LG Chem Battery Plant Groundbreaking and Gets First Seat Time in the Chevy Volt
- USA: DOE juices battery companies with $2.4B in stimulus funds
[...] Excerpt from: The Tangled Web of Battery Supply Relationships | 4EVRiders.org … [...]