About Sue Babenic: Sue Babinec is a Senior Advisor at the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) and is responsible for their energy storage portfolio–both transportation and grid. In the commercialization aspects of this role she prepares breakthrough energy technology teams for the transition from lab to market by coaching on patents, manufacturing process design/economics and partnerships with customers/funding groups. In her strategy role she helps to shape improved approaches, across a broad spectrum, towards maximizing positive impact of ARPA-E technologies on the US competitiveness.

Talk abstract:
The long awaited emergence of ES as an economically sound enabler of electrified trans- portation, often considered pure speculation, is now a reality. Li-Ion is satisfying the many criteria for ICE parity which was originally set by DOE. Its high volume manufacturing now gives rise to lower costs which ensures continued commoditization and widespread adoption, albeit not based on US as the market lead. Thus the formerly nascent industry is settling in to predictable mature behaviors. For the reimagined GRID of the future, cost effective wind and solar renewables coupled to the now cost effective Li-Ion storage are beginning to beat the usual approaches for electricity generation - without subsidies. In this presentation we will look at the evolution and some of the details of this pres- ent case, the remaining performance shortcomings, and how they might be met. Topics will include global manufacturing supply/demand trends, economics of scale, remaining technology gaps and technical challenges, including ARPA-E breakthrough approaches for both transportation and stationary. Our problem has transitioned from grappling to bring Li-Ion to the world to avoiding its total technology lock-in, which may ultimately thwart the next generation of progress.