This week's announcement of a joint venture between KION and BMZ is further evidence that lithium-ion is here to stay.
It is clear that demand for the new battery technology is surpassing supply; hence the collaboration between one of Europe's largest forklift manufacturers and "the European leader in the fast-growing lithium-ion battery market".
The KION deal follows a similar move by Jungheinrich, which teamed up with battery maker Triathlon Holding to speed up supply of lithium-ion batteries and supplement its own in-house production line.
And there's further movement on the other side of the world, with Toyota this week confirming the approval of a new line-up of lithium-ion batteries for use in its three- and four-wheel electric sit-down models. The move forms part of the company's aggressive development plan for alternative energy solutions.