Technical glitches delay construction of Renault's battery plant in France

Part of Renault's grand plug-in vehicle scheme calls for the automaker to construct a lithium-ion battery production facility outside of Paris, France. The idea is simple: the site will supply Renault with battery packs for its forthcoming electric vehicles. Unfortunately, technical glitches have forced Renault to delay construction of the facility.

The French automaker confirmed reports that the factory – due to open its doors in late 2012 – will not be functional until 2014 or 2015 (!) due to technical constraints. Instead, Renault will buy batteries from AESC, the joint venture between Nissan and NEC, and from South Korea's LG Chem.

A Renault spokeswoman confirmed that the project would be delayed, but claims that this setback won't impact the automaker's electric vehicle roll-out schedule. Renault is due to launch the Fluence, Kangoo and Twizy electric vehicles in 2011, followed by the Zoe in 2012 and the Twingo in 2014.

Photos copyright ©2010 Drew Phillips / AOL

[Source: Ward's Auto – sub. req.]