Portfolio of lithium-ion batteries for hybrid and electric cars extended to 120 kilowatts.

Vienna/Regensburg, April 25, 2008. Constantly rising oil prices and ever more stringent exhaust gas and noise pollution regulations worldwide require new approaches to drive systems with minimal environmental and climatic impact. Continental's Powertrain Division sees hybrid and electric drives as the proper route toward sustainable mobility, satisfying the end user's wish for vehicles which are both economical yet dynamic. "Using lithium-ion technology for batteries is the key to the success of hybrid and electric vehicles. The Powertrain Division is setting new standards with the expansion of its battery portfolio to cater for power requirements of up to 120 kilowatts with a significantly enhanced energy content of up to 18 kilowatt-hours", comments Jörg Grotendorst, Executive Vice President of the Hybrid Electric Vehicle Business Unit.

The Division's expertise is concentrated in the areas of power electronics, electric motors and energy accumulators, including energy management, combining them within a modular system. With its variable design, the modular system allows the components to be used flexibly to suit different engine-power classes and installation conditions for hybrid and electric drives, thus covering a wide range of customer requirements.

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"A hybrid or electric drive must be essentially economical", says Grotendorst, adding: "the benefits offered by the modularity of our hybrid design are helping vehicle manufacturers bring environmentally acceptable hybrid technology to market even more rapidly and at an optimum price. Current market trends indicate that we are on the right track. Legislation will also do its bit in the relentless drive toward the zero emission vehicle."

With targeted annual sales of more than €26.4 billion for 2008, the Continental Corporation is one of the top automotive suppliers worldwide. As a supplier of brake systems, systems and components for the powertrain and chassis, instrumentation, infotainment solutions, vehicle electronics, tires and technical elastomers, the corporation contributes towards enhanced driving safety and protection of the global climate. Continental is also a competent partner in networked automobile communication. Today, the corporation employs approximately 150,000 people at nearly 200 locations in 36 countries.

The Powertrain division within the automotive supplier Continental AG integrates innovative and efficient system solutions throughout the drivetrain in vehicles. This boosts performance and enhances riding comfort while reducing consumption and emissions. As partner to the automotive industry, the division develops and produces a wide-ranging product portfolio at over sixty locations worldwide, beginning with gasoline and diesel injection systems and engine and transmission controls and extending through to components and systems for hybrid drives. Based on fiscal 2006 the Division posted sales of around EUR5 billion with a workforce of approximately 26,000 at present.