Battery market abuzz / Demand for power storage increases amid energy shortage fears

[kristopher]

Battery market abuzz / Demand for power storage increases amid energy shortage fears
Yu Toda and Takeshi Kurihara / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writers


Storage batteries are attracting attention from a wider range of businesses and consumers due to fears of a power shortage precipitated by the crisis at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant.

Such concerns have many people interested in storing electricity in offices and homes for emergency use. Due to the anticipated increase in demand, manufacturers are gearing up production of storage batteries for both home and business use.

On Tuesday, Sony Corp. showed its new plant in Motomiya, Fukushima Prefecture, to the press. The plant, which cost about 26 billion yen, was built for manufacturing electrodes for lithium-ion batteries.

The new plant is scheduled to begin shipments in December.

Toshiba Corp. will double its production capacity...

http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/business/T110714003783.htm