In the wake of the bridge loan to the General Motors and Chrysler last Friday from the TARP fund, US Senator Evan Bayh (D-IN) made a federal aid proposal of his own. Bayh is proposing that as part of a stimulus package early in 2009, Congress should include $1.63 billion in grants to help fund the build-out of US manufacturing capacity for advanced batteries, development of the batteries and intelligent grid technology to help support widespread use of electric vehicles. Not surprisingly, some of the chief beneficiaries of this aid would be EnerDel, Indy Power Systems, Altairnano, Remy International, and Bright Automotive, all Indiana-based companies.
Bayh and a dozen other Senators sent a letter to Senate majority leader Harry Reid (D-NV) making the proposal. Investments in battery and grid technology and manufacturing are critical to ensure that plug-in vehicles are economically viable as well as making sure that America doesn't trade foreign oil dependency for foreign battery dependency. Currently, the majority of batteries for electric and plug-in vehicles are being sourced from overseas, mainly Japan. Smart-grid technology with bi-directional communication and power flow is also critical to allow for public charging and vehicle to grid energy flow.
[Source: Senator Evan Bayh]
Bayh and a dozen other Senators sent a letter to Senate majority leader Harry Reid (D-NV) making the proposal. Investments in battery and grid technology and manufacturing are critical to ensure that plug-in vehicles are economically viable as well as making sure that America doesn't trade foreign oil dependency for foreign battery dependency. Currently, the majority of batteries for electric and plug-in vehicles are being sourced from overseas, mainly Japan. Smart-grid technology with bi-directional communication and power flow is also critical to allow for public charging and vehicle to grid energy flow.
[Source: Senator Evan Bayh]
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