Evida Power, Inc., a designer and manufacturer of lithium-iron-phosphate battery packs, recently signed an agreement worth more than US$250 million with German and French electric vehicle manufacturer Mia Electric, to provide 8 kWh battery packs for three new vehicle models until 2016. Evida’ first major project was as designer of the first swappable battery pack for Project Better Place.
The five-year contract will see the company supply up to 10,000 units per year to power Mia’s zero-emission three and four-seater Mia town car (named Mia and Mia L), and its utility vehicle, which features a 1,500-liter cargo volume. The 8 kWh lithium-iron-phosphate battery packs will provide the vehicles with a range of between 80 and 90 km (50 and 60 miles) per charge in urban cycle, and can be fully recharged in less than three hours when connected to a standard 220V power supply. The battery pack can also be fast-charged with a 10-minute rapid-charge for an extra 8 km of range.
Mia has initiated pre-sales of its vehicles to municipal and corporate fleet operators in France and Germany, including the regional utility organization, STAWAG Stadtwerke Aachen AG and the Nuremberg-based NRGIE. Initial delivery of the Mia town cars will begin from 1 June 2011.
Evida worked closely with Mia Electric’s design and production teams in Cerizay, France, to provide a customized, complete battery and vehicle integration solution including battery cells, modules, cooling systems, battery management system (BMS) and integrated software tools.