Honda, GM to Jointly Develop New EV Battery System

Tokyo, June 7 (Jiji Press)--Honda Motor Co. <7267> and General Motors Co. said Thursday that they will jointly develop a next-generation battery system for electric vehicles. The smaller-sized larger-capacity battery system will be mounted on the two automakers' future electric vehicle models to be released mainly in the North American market, according to the announcement. The new initiative comes on top of the establishment of a joint venture between the Japanese and U.S. automakers to produce an advanced hydrogen fuel cell system from around 2020. "In addition to our ongoing joint development and production of fuel cells, this battery component collaboration will enable us to take a new step toward the realization of a sustainable society," Honda Managing Officer Takashi Sekiguchi said in a statement. "GM's decades of electrification experience and strategic electric vehicle investments, alongside Honda's commitment to advancing mobility, will result in better solutions for our customers and progress on our zero emissions vision," GM Executive Vice President Mark Reuss said. The two companies plan to develop the next-generation battery system based on new lithium-ion batteries now being researched by GM. GM may take charge of producing the battery and supply it to Honda, informed sources said. Honda and GM hope to release low-priced electric vehicles by rationalizing development and production, and reducing related costs. They may also team up for batteries for electric vehicles to be launched in markets other than North America, the sources said. In response to international moves to enhance environmental regulations, automakers in the world are increasingly focusing on electric vehicles. Honda plans to release electric vehicles in China later this year and in Europe next year. Cross-industry cooperation is spreading for the development of electric vehicle batteries. As part of the moves, leading Japanese automaker Toyota Motor Corp. <7203> and Japanese electronics giant Panasonic Corp. <6752> are considering a possible tie-up. END