As the world warms and gasoline prices rise, Japanese automakers are gearing up their efforts to develop vehicles that emit less or zero carbon dioxide.
The fiercest competition is seen in the race to develop more powerful batteries because such cells will be the key to turning electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids into practical means of transport, industry experts say.
The efforts of Japanese automakers to develop batteries grabbed the headlines June 11 when Toyota Motor Corp. announced it will develop "next-generation batteries" by 2030 that can outperform lithium-ion cells, which have been widely touted as the likely power source for the "green" cars of the future.