DOE to Invest $30 Million in Hybrid Car Development

The Department of Energy (DOE) has announced plans to invest up to $30 million in a public-private, cost-sharing program funding the development of technology supporting Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEVs).

PHEVs can be charged with electricity like pure electric vehicles and run under engine power like hybrid electric vehicles. Unlike standard hybrid vehicles, the batteries of a PHEV can be charged from any standard 110-volt electrical outlet.

The goal of the research project will be to develop improvements to battery technology that will allow a PHEV to travel 40 miles, on battery power alone, without needing to be recharged.

DOE believes that a 40-mile electric-only range without recharging would cover most daily roundtrip commutes, thus satisfying 70 percent of the average daily travel in the United States.

DOE hopes to make cost-competitive PHEVs available for sale by 2016.

"The Department remains committed to perfecting and deploying a low-cost, highly efficient vehicle battery to further the Administration’s strategy of bringing more clean energy technologies online," said DOE Under Secretary Bud Albright in a press release. "We are eager for this alliance to take shape so cleaner, more efficient vehicles can successfully move from the laboratory to the showroom."

Also See: The Freedom CAR: Goodbye Gasoline, says DOE (2002)