Battery Prices for Electric Vehicles have dropped 30 percent since 2009

The average price of lithium-ion battery packs for electric vehicles fell 14 percent in the past year as production capacity exceeded demand.

According to London-based research company Bloomberg New Energy Finance, The average price for an electric vehicle lithium-ion battery pack was $689/kWh in Q1 2012, down 14% from approximately $800/kWh a year earlier and down around 30% from $1000-plus levels in 2009,

“Batteries are one of the biggest drivers of the cost of electric vehicles,” New Energy Finance Chief Executive Officer Michael Liebreich said in the statement. “A sharp decline in price may be unwelcome for battery manufacturers, but it is essential for the long-term health of the sector.”

Ford CEO Alan Mulally Speaking at a forum on green technology on Monday indicated battery packs for the company's Focus electric car costs between $12,000 and $15,000 apiece. Based on that price range Ford appears to pay between $522 and $650 a kilowatt-hour for its electric-vehicle batteries.

The U.S. Department of Energy has set a goal of lowering the cost of batteries to $300 a kilowatt-hour by 2015. Battery prices may drop to about $150 a kilowatt-hour by 2030.

About 43,000 electric vehicles were sold in 2011.

Bloomberg

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