Word: demands
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Ford is facing a similar problem: it simply cannot get enough of the batteries to keep up with the demand for its Ford Escape and Mercury Mariner hybrid models, says spokesman George Pipas. Ford currently has access to only 24,000 of the special batteries under a contract it signed years ago, he says. "The supply of batteries is capped...
...sudden shift in consumer demand has left manufacturers facing a major challenge in keeping their showrooms filled with hybrid vehicles. Sales of the Toyota Prius actually dropped in May because the company didn't have any more vehicles to sell. In an industry where a two-month supply of vehicles is considered the norm, Toyota supplies of key hybrid models are being measured in single digits, says Toyota Motor Sales vice president Bob Carter. About 20% of all Toyota Camrys sold in the U.S. are now hybrids, making them more popular than models equipped with a V6 engine. (Meanwhile, Toyota...
...another problem in keeping up with demand is an acute shortage of the nickel-metal-hydride batteries required for hybrid vehicles. GM's launch of its new hybrid-SUVs has been delayed for nearly three months by a labor dispute at a key supplier of the batteries. And Toyota's chances of getting more hybrids into showrooms is foundering on the battery shortage. "We can't produce enough batteries right now," Carter says. A new plant for the nickel-metal-hydride batteries won't come on line until 2010. GM is deep into negotiations to purchase the battery subsidiary...
...demand for hybrid batteries will only grow. GM Chairman Richard Wagoner says his company plans to have eight hybrid models on the road by the end of 2008. "Our view is today's levels are a far more accurate prediction of where fuel prices are going to be in the future," he says. "It appears we have reached a tipping point. Global demand is ahead of global supply. Certainly it looks like the energy demand is going to grow." Honda, which posted record sales in May thanks to the popularity of its compact Civic, also is amping up the production...
...winners of the platform wars stand to make billions selling devices, selling eyeballs to advertisers, selling services such as music, movies, even computer power on demand. Yet the outcome here is far more important than who makes the most money. The future of the Internet - how we get information, how we communicate with one another and, most important, who controls it - is at stake...