Exide to make hybrid batteries

Automotive battery major Exide Industries is planning to make batteries for hybrid vehicles (hybrid batteries). The company has started research in this regard at its centre in Kolkota.

The product is expected to be ready for the domestic and overseas market by 2008.

Hybrid vehicles use engines powered by a combination of electrical and fuel energy. The battery for such vehicles is also different. Once the production begins, Exide will become the first Indian company to make such batteries.

"Exide is involved in research to make nickel metal hydride batteries for hybrid vehicles. Our targets are Indian and foreign original equipment companies," said SK Mittal, director, R&D, Exide Industries.

The company is eying orders from Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M), Hyundai Motor and Tata Motors who are planning to launch hybrid vehicles in India.

Hybrid vehicles are fuel efficient and environment friendly. "Hybrid cars offers mileage up to 25 km per litre of fuel," said Mittal.

In developed markets such as the US and Japan, one in every 10 cars sold is a hybrid. Lithium ion and nickel metal hydride are the latest available technologies for hybrid batteries. However, in India, sales of hybrid vehicles are negligible.

Local production of hybrid batteries would revolutionise the domestic hybrid vehicle industry, according to auto analysts in Mumbai.

Pioneers such as Toyota and Honda had so far kept their hybrid vehicles away from the Indian market on account of heavy import duty.

Such batteries are technologically fragile to be imported for assembly in the country. So hybrid vehicles have to be imported as completely built units (CBU) at present.

"Once hybrid battery manufacturing commences locally, it will be easy for foreign car makers to locally source these batteries. This should make hybrid cars cheaper here in the long run," said a Mumbai-based auto analyst.