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AUSTIN, Texas, Jul 16, 2007 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Valence Technology, Inc. (Nasdaq:VLNC) today announces that its lithium phosphate batteries will be used in an MIT student engineering project that converts a 914 Porsche into an electric vehicle. The vehicle will be used as a research and development tool by MIT students to demonstrate the viability of electric powered automobiles, while evaluating where and how far the future of electric vehicle (EV) technology needs to go.
"We are proud to support MIT's 914 Project and its technical focus to further the awareness and advancement of electric vehicle technology," said Robert L. Kanode, President and CEO. "The enabling capabilities of Valence's lithium phosphate batteries, including reliability, safety and long lasting performance, are well suited to the EV market. Using our batteries, the students are better equipped to run extreme tests and measure real-world battery conditions when the car is operating for an extended period of time."
Valence contributed 18 lithium phosphate rechargeable batteries delivered in a 12-volt standard U-Charge(R) power system pack complete with monitoring systems to provide increased ease-of-use in managing and maintaining the performance of the power system. During the conversion, students replaced the Porsche's original engine with an electric motor including 12 batteries, a battery management system, various relays, and a controller that makes all the components work together.
Valence's large-format lithium phosphate power system provides the student teams with extended run-time for the car during road simulation testing, in addition to superior safety and flexibility over lithium metal oxide chemistries, such as lithium cobalt oxide. The electric vehicle's battery pack is unlikely to experience thermal runaway under normal use and conditions with Valence's lithium phosphates as the battery pack features a single cell fail-safe function, shutting off power to degenerative cells for easier cell replacement.
Yang Shao-Horn, an associate professor in MIT's Department of Mechanical Engineering and her husband, Dr. Quinn Horn, spearheaded the project after purchasing the Porsche from eBay to offer students a hands-on learning experience. The project will also help to provide valuable information for Shao-Horn's research on advanced batteries at the Electrochemical Energy Laboratory. With help from MIT's engineering students, her research team will be able to measure the conditions that batteries encounter inside an operating vehicle.
About Valence Technology, Inc.
Valence Technology developed and markets the industry's first commercially available, safe, large-format family of Lithium Phosphate Rechargeable Batteries. Valence Technology holds an extensive, worldwide portfolio of issued and pending patents relating to its Lithium Phosphate Rechargeable Batteries. The company has its headquarters in Austin, Texas, and facilities in Las Vegas, Nevada, Mallusk, Northern Ireland and Suzhou, China. Valence is traded on the Nasdaq Capital Markets under the ticker symbol VLNC and can be found on the internet at www.valence.com.
Safe Harbor Statement
Some information included in this press release contains forward-looking statements, within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Act of 1934. Such statements include information relating to business activities and project development. These statements can sometimes be identified by the use of forward-looking words such as "may," "will," "anticipate," "estimate," "except," "scheduled," or "intend" and similar expressions. Such forward-looking information involves important risks and uncertainties that could significantly affect anticipated results in the future and, accordingly, such results may differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statements made by or on behalf of Valence. These and other risk factors that could affect actual results are discussed in our periodic reports filed with the SEC, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended March 31, 2007, and the reader is directed to these statements for a further discussion of important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements included in this press release are made only as of the date of this release. Valence does not undertake any obligation to update or supplement any forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances and cannot assure that projected results or events will be achieved.
SOURCE: Valence Technology, Inc.
Valence Technology, Inc., Austin Lois Paul Partners Emilie Harris, 512-638-5321 Media Relations or Pierpont Investor Relations A. Pierre Dubois, 512-527-2921 Director of Investor Relations
Copyright Business Wire 2007
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