Toyota builds third hybrid battery plant - lithium ion batteries for sale
TOKYO-Toyota is preparing to speed up the production of hybrid cars, announcing on Tuesday the establishment of a third plant in Japan to produce batteries, key components of the "green" car.
Just last week, the company announced it would build a second such battery plant.
Toyota Motor Company
Prius has become the world's leader in hybrid vehicles and has sold more than 1 million vehicles over the past decade.
Sometime after 2010, it hopes to sell 1 million hybrid cars a year.
Honda needs to increase its battery production to this end.
Other automakers are aiming to catch up with their new gasolineand-
Electric hybrid vehicles-the technology is becoming more attractive to world drivers as gas prices soar.
The 30 billion yen ($0. 291 billion) plant in Miyagi prefecture, northern Japan will be operated by Panasonic Electric Vehicle Energy.
A joint venture between Toyota and Panasonic electric industry.
The factory will be put into production by 2010 to produce nickel-
Metal hydrogen batteries with an annual production capacity of 200,000
About half of production has increased.
The latest move came after Toyota planned last week to build a 20 billion yen ($0. 194 billion) plant in Shizuoka, central Japan, while producing nickel.
Metal hydrogen batteries for gas
Electric hybrid car
Hybrid vehicles reduce global warming-related pollution and emissions by switching between gasoline engines and motors, thus providing better mileage than standard cars.
Japan's second-largest Honda last week
Second only to Toyota's largest carmaker, it said it would increase its hybrid car sales to 500,000 vehicles a year by sometime after 2010.
Honda said it would launch a new hybrid.
There are only four hybrid models next year.
Nissan Motor Company
The company has not yet developed its own hybrid for commercial sales, and it says it will have its own original hybrid by 2010.
Nissan says a joint venture with electronics maker NEC
Will start on a large scale
Lithium production
Ion batteries produced in a factory in Japan in 2009. Lithium-
Ion batteries are now common in laptops, which generate more energy than nickel batteries
Metal hydrogen batteries.
Toyota says lithium
Ion batteries can be used in the plug
In a hybrid, it is possible to charge from a home power outlet, but it does not give details of the factory on this battery.