Report: China-U.S. transport race hinges on resources

Jan 22, 2011 by Candace Lombardi

The Chinese government has committed $15 billion over the next 10 years to the electric vehicle (EV) industry alone, while the U.S. Department of Energy spends $4 billion a year on research and development for a wide variety of energy-related tech.

The figures paint a portrait of two countries with vastly different approaches to growing industries and jobs, according to an Accenture report released today, “The US and China: The Race to Disruptive Transport Technologies,” (PDF) which parses out the advantages and disadvantages each country has right now in the realm of alternative vehicles and fuels.

China has been keen on taking proven innovative technology, then backing it financially and with government mandates to turn it into an industry. It’s that money and governmental control which may give the country an advantage in building a global EV industry.

China also has rich deposits of lithium, a key ingredient in many EV batteries. Because of this, the country is already a leading global manufacturer of lithium ion batteries for electric and hybrid-electric cars.

Sixty percent of the United States’ rechargeable battery imports already come from China, Japan, and Korea. The U.S., as its EV industry grows, will have to import almost all lithium ion batteries, or the lithium needed to make those batteries, from Asia and Latin America, according to Accenture.

So what does the U.S. have to compete against China’s lithium, money, and government control? To put it succinctly: brainpower, strong intellectual property laws, and….

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