Indy to power electric car.
Indianapolis, Indiana plant expanding to produce lithium-ion batteries
EnerDel plans to expand its Indianapolis plant by the end of the year to start commercial production of 600-pound lithium-ion battery packs that will power a Norwegian-made all-electric car.
"We're planning to expand rapidly. We're scaling up to some big numbers," said Charles Gassenheimer, chairman and chief executive of Ener1, the Florida-based parent of the battery maker.
The batteries will go into the Think car, a two-seater produced in Norway that aims at becoming the first commercially available electric car.
Think wants to gear up to produce 10,000 cars a year in 2009, Gassenheimer said, with EnerDel supplying the batteries.
EnerDel plans a 49,000-square-foot expansion and remodeling of its plant at 8740 Hague Road, where batteries are produced, according to a state-filed building permit. Currently EnerDel does battery research at the plant and produces limited numbers of lithium-ion batteries for testing and development in electric cars and gas-electric hybrid vehicles.
"This is one of the crucial steps" in EnerDel's history, Gassenheimer said of the expansion. "The next six months are crucial. We want to make sure we execute on the production side."
EnerDel employs about 100 people at the plant and could hire 150 more in the next 18 months, said spokeswoman Rachel Carroll. Many would be engineering jobs, she said.
EnerDel has been talking to the state about economic incentives, such as property tax abatement, for the project. An announcement about incentives could come soon.
Think was an electric car project of Ford Motor Co. until Ford sold it in 2003. Norwegian investors bought Think in 2006. Think cars with the EnerDel battery are expected to be sold first in Europe in late 2008 or early 2009, with U.S. sales following.
The auto industry needs a light, powerful battery to make the electric car a viable alternative to the gasolinepowered car. The lithium-ion battery appears to be the best solution, but energy experts say kinks must be worked out, including weight and heat production problems.
EnerDel, formed in 2004, is staking its future on the lithium-ion battery, which is commonly found in laptops and
cell phones. It claims to have a battery that runs cool and doesn't short out or explode even if punctured. Hybrid vehicles currently use nickel metal hydride battery packs.
EnerDel is one of a handful of battery makers that have received millions of dollars in funding from the three major U.S. automakers through the U.S. Advanced Battery Consortium. It also has received grants from the U.S. Department of Energy.
EnerDel's hybrid battery, which is the size of a conventional car lead battery, is not as far along in development as the much larger battery for all-electric cars.
When tested in the Toyota Prius, the hybrid battery achieved 77 miles per gallon, Gassenheimer said. The nickel metal hydride battery used commercially in the Prius gets 50 to 55 mpg, he said.
Gassenheimer said EnerDel wants to sign two contracts with car makers by the end of the year to develop its hybrid battery for commercial use.
Ener1, which is publicly traded, last week received bankruptcy court approval to buy out the 20 percent stake of its EnerDel founding partner Delphi Corp. for cash and stock worth $30 million. That gives Ener1 100 percent control of EnerDel.
"They were unable to help us financially due to their bankruptcy," Gassenheimer said of Delphi.
He said Ener1 now wants to find a new partner, such as an automaker, for the battery
business.
"I don't believe EnerDel's best approach is to go it alone. We need partners," he said.
EnerDel is competing with Japanese powers Panasonic and Sony and other companies to come up with better car batteries that are low-cost, efficient, high-performing and safe.
Carroll said EnerDel is committed to producing its batteries in the United States. That could give EnerDel an advantage in the U.S. marketplace. The thinking among some alternative-energy analysts is that
government policymakers looking to reduce America's dependence on foreign oil wouldn't be eager to give economic incentives to a foreign battery company that would send money spent on energy out of the country.
"EnerDel is well-positioned" to find users for its batteries, said Susan Eustis, an analyst for WinterGreen Research in Lexington, Mass. Besides cars, she said, "there are just so many places where this stuff can be used: wheelchairs, scooters, robots, power tools. You'll just see a proliferation" of users if the lithium-ion battery works well.
*Courtesy Star reporter Jeff Swiatek
