A*Star, Canada's Hydro-Quebec to set up US$20m lab at Biopolis

Singapore

THE Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*Star) announced on Wednesday it has signed an agreement with Canadian renewable energy company Hydro-Quebec to set up a US$20 million joint laboratory in Singapore's Biopolis to develop batteries which are safer and more efficient.

More specifically, the 30-man laboratory - staffed by A*Star's NanoBio Lab and Hydro-Quebec - is aiming to improve advanced solid-state batteries, touted to be a safer alternative to lithium-ion batteries, which have seen wide proliferation in consumer electronics but are susceptible to exploding.