NEW YORK (AP) -- Automotive battery maker Ener1 Inc. says it is providing lithium-ion batteries for Volvo's C30 battery electric vehicle prototype.
The batteries are made in the U.S. by Ener1 unit EnerDel Inc., which also is providing batteries for Volvo's plug-in hybrid V70 demonstration vehicles being road-tested in Europe this fall.
The C30 battery electric vehicle, being unveiled Thursday in Sweden, is designed as a zero-emission, city commuter car with a 95-mile range.
"Volvo's rigorous performance standards are well known throughout the auto industry, and Ener1 is proud to be collaborating with them for a second time," Ener1 CEO Charles Gassenheimer said in a statement.
Ener1 makes lithium-ion batteries for hybrid, plug-in hybrid and pure electric vehicles, and develops commercial fuel cell products and nanotechnology-based materials for batteries. The New York-based company last week said it was creating a new European division because of increasing electric-car interest from carmakers there.
Ener1's Indiana-based EnerDel unit in August received $118.5 million in federal stimulus finds to expand lithium-ion battery production. The company has said the funds will help double its U.S. production capacity, and create about 1,700 new jobs in the state.
In addition to its deal with Volvo, EnerDel has partnerships with Nissan, and plug-in and electric vehicle makers Fisker and Think Global. Based on DOE data, Ener1 has estimated that the batteries it produces could save the U.S. economy up to $600 million at the gas pump and eliminate up to 1 billion tons of carbon emissions annually.
Volvo is a unit of Detroit-based Ford Motor Co.