Lithium ion versus lead batteries

American A123 Systems will develop battery packs for a new electric passenger car from SAIC, the largest automaker in China.
The batteries are for a new vehicle to be launched in 2012. These batteries will supply more power to weight ratio and twice as much or more than a traditional lead acid battery. But at what price?
The aim for electric cars is a maximum US$87 per kilowatt-hour. Lithium-ion and nickel-metal hydride batteries can cost up to US$300 per kilowatt hour. Plainly there is a large gap to be bridged.
New Energy World reports Jason Forcier, vice president of Massachusetts-based Automotive Solutions Group at A123 Systems, as saying, "Chinese government officials recently forecast that the country’s annual production of electric vehicles could reach one million units by 2020."
The question is whether they will be using lithium ion batteries.