Volkswagen is among the founding members of an alliance of German industries developing high-performance batteries for stationary and mobile operation. The project was presented during the Innovation Congress in Berlin.

The alliance for innovation among the companies BASF, Bosch, Evonik Degussa, Li-Tec, STEAG Saar Energie and Volkswagen suggested a common start on a lithium-ion initiative to the Federal Minister for Education and Research, Dr Annette Schavan. The goal is to increase substantially the energy and performance density of the batteries and to accelerate the possible use in production. Around 360m euros will be invested in this project by the participating industrial partners in the coming years.