Cobasys
On July 14, 2009, the sale of Cobasys to SB LiMotive Co. Ltd., an electric vehicle battery joint venture between Samsung SDI Co. Ltd. and Robert Bosch GmbH, was announced.
The pioneering work on NiMH batteries – essentially based on sintered Ti2Ni+TiNi+x alloys for the negative electrode and NiOOH-electrodes for the positives – was performed at the Battelle Geneva Research Center starting after its invention in 1967: The development work was sponsored over nearly two decades by Daimler-Benz Comp./Stuttgart and by Volkswagen AG.
ECD Ovonics, half owner of Cobasys, was founded in 1960 by Stanford R. Ovshinsky,[5] a scientist and inventor, with his wife and collaborator Iris M.
It also began work with Hyundai Motor Company and an unnamed Japanese automaker on batteries for electric vehicles (EVs).
[13] NiMH batteries were used in small production runs of EVs from Toyota, Honda,[12] DaimlerChrysler, and Ford in 1997, and GM in 1999.
[33] Panasonic EV Energy (PEVE), a joint venture between Matsushita and Toyota begun in 1996, pioneered several advances in large-format NiMH batteries suitable for electric vehicles.
Settlement terms called for cross-licensing between parties of current and future NiMH-related patents filed through December 31, 2014.
[37] According to SEC filings, ECD Ovonics and Cobasys hold 125 US patents related to NiMH battery technology.
[38] Cobasys and A123Systems announced a partnership in 2007 to develop, manufacture, sell and service lithium-ion batteries for automotive applications.
In March, 2007, Cobasys announced that they were exploring strategic alternatives to growth, engaging the services of financial advisors from UBS Investment Bank and Goldman, Sachs & Co.[41] On July 14, 2009, the sale of Cobasys to SB LiMotive Co. Ltd., an electric vehicle battery joint venture between Samsung SDI Co. Ltd. and Robert Bosch GmbH, was announced.
On February 14, 2012, the former Energy Conversion Devices Inc. operating subsidiary "Ovonic Battery Company" was acquired by BASF Corporation of Germany.
Large-format NiMH batteries may have been commercially viable and ready for mass production, but there have been claims that Chevron and other oil-related interests may have suppressed the technology.
[44] Chevron's influence over Cobasys extended beyond a strict 50/50 joint venture, holding a 19.99% interest in ECD Ovonics.
In her book, Plug-in Hybrids: The Cars that Will Recharge America, published in February 2007, Sherry Boschert argues that large-format NiMH batteries are commercially viable but that Cobasys refuses to sell or license them to small companies or individuals.
Boschert concludes that "it's possible that Cobasys (Chevron) is squelching all access to large NiMH batteries through its control of patent licenses in order to remove a competitor to gasoline.
Or it's possible that Cobasys simply wants the market for itself and is waiting for a major automaker to start producing plug-in hybrids or electric vehicles."
[48] In an interview with The Economist, Stan Ovshinsky stated, "I think we at ECD we made a mistake of having a joint venture with an oil company, frankly speaking.
[51] In October 2007, International Acquisitions Services, Inc. and Innovative Transportation Systems AG filed suit against Cobasys and its parents for refusing to fill a large, previously agreed-upon order for large-format NiMH batteries to be used in the electric Innovan.
