Testing of Axion Power International’s lead carbon batteries is to start in September in Belgium at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel and the Battery Innovation Centre of MOBI Research Group. The PbC batteries will be evaluated for automotive applications based on real world driving conditions and vehicle types available in the EU, said the firm.

The Battery Innovation Centre of MOBI Research Group is the main Belgian centre for research and development of energy storage systems for traction and stationary applications. It offers state-of-the-art testing facilities and modelling for rechargeable energy storage systems.

Separately, Axion Power announced in July that it had reached an agreement with Chinese state-owned battery firm Fengfan to introduce its chemistry to China.

Chief executive officer Richard Bogan said that following a trip to China in May, Fengfan had agreed to help Axion commercialize its PbC technology.

Officials from the Chinese firm made a return visit to Pennsylvania, where Axion is based, at the end of July.

A number of Axion’s batteries are with Fengfan for testing and validation.

The move would mark a shift in focus for Fengfan, which calls itself the best lead-acid battery provider in China, and until now has concentrated on traditional lead-acid batteries which it sells to more than 30 automobile companies.

The principal focus of the batteries will be short-term storage for renewable energy, said a Fengfan official.