For Your Information
Multi-Million Dollar Partnership Between Hydro-Québec and the U.S. Army
A recent news item in the Journal de Montréal informs that as early as 2016, Hydro-Québec and the U.S. Army Research Laboratory (ARL) were working together to develop a new model of lithium-ion rechargeable battery that would have civil as well as military applications.
On June 29, 2018, Hydro-Québec issued a press release regarding what they called "a breakthrough in the lithium-ion battery materials field" on the part of Hydro-Québec and ARL researchers. In their words, they had "achieved a world first: building a 1.2 Ah lithium-ion cell with a voltage of 5 Volts" in the form of a rechargeable battery comprised mostly of lithium, cobalt and phosphate.
The research was part of a U.S. $8 million contract between Hydro-Québec and the U.S. Army Research Laboratory that ran from February 2016 to November 2020 where the partners split the costs 50-50. Hydro-Québec's General Director of the Center of Excellence in Transportation Electrification and Energy Storage at that time, Karim Zaghib, had this to say about the breakthrough: "With the high voltage of this new cell, we can reach a very high energy density. This highly desirable property can improve batteries used in a wide range of applications."
The ARL website, under the topic "Who we are," states the following: "The U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command (DEVCOM) Army Research Laboratory is strategically placed under the Army Futures Command as the Army's sole foundational research laboratory focused on cutting-edge scientific discovery, technological innovation, and transition of knowledge products that offer incredible potential to improve the Army's chances of surviving and winning any future conflicts."
And under the topic "Collaborate with us," it declares that "Groundbreaking advancements in science and technology at DEVCOM Army Research Laboratory are made possible through meaningful collaborations between Army researchers and members of the larger Science &Technology ecosystem. In order to solve the Army's toughest challenges, we welcome potential teammates in private industry, academia, and other domains around the world to reach out and explore new frontiers in Army Modernization with our highly experienced subject matter experts."
The type of research promoted by the U.S. Army, as shown by the example of this partnership between Hydro-Québec and the ARL, falls in line with what the U.S. imperialists have in mind when it comes to manufacturing weapons and military equipment that extensively use lithium-ion rechargeable batteries and other minerals critical to U.S. "national security," as part of their quest for world hegemony.
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An article entitled "Viewpoint: Offshore Battery Production Poses Problems for Military" was published in the November 2018 issue of the U.S. magazine National Defense. Its author, Marc D. Gietter, a retired industrial engineer with the Tactical Shelters Branch of the U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Command (CECOM), had this to say:
"Lithium batteries -- both rechargeable and non-rechargeable -- have become ubiquitous in almost every weapon system used by the Defense Department. Although it is a relatively small consumer of lithium battery technologies when compared to the commercial market, the importance of these technologies cannot be understated.
"Just about every piece of man-portable electronic equipment crucial to the success of U.S. warfighters on the battlefield is powered by some form of lithium battery. The reliance on them is expected to grow exponentially as the next generation of weapons -- such as new tactical ground vehicles, unmanned systems and directed energy weapons -- are designed around the high energy density and low weight of a lithium battery technology."[1]
Intentions
Behind "Green Economy"
Asked to comment about the
partnership between Quebec's energy
Crown corporation and the U.S. army, Daniel Breton, President
and CEO
of Electric Mobility Canada, a not-for-profit organization
"dedicated
exclusively to the advancement of e-mobility" had this to say:
"The
biggest
consumer of institutional oil in the world is the U.S. military.
They
want to find a way to reduce their dependence on oil. They are
aware
that the most disruptive events in the next few decades will be
climate
change issues."
In other words, it is acceptable for the U.S. to keep instigating wars of aggression and occupation, financing proxy wars and coups d'état that will create even more destruction, chaos, human refugee crises, etc., as the "most disruptive events," so long as it is done within the framework of a "greener" economy.
The people of Quebec and Canada do not subscribe to such an outlook that disinforms on what the real issues are when it comes to fighting for a bright future for themselves and for all of humanity. More specifically, they reject this notion that a "green" economy means that Quebec and Canada's economies should be integrated into the U.S. war machine.
Note
1. See "Join Global Climate Strike Canadians Can Only Rely on Themselves to Sort Out Climate Crisis", Renewal Update, September 24, 2021.
(With files from Renewal Update, Hydro-Québec, ARL, National Defense and Journal de Montréal)
This article was published in
Volume 52 Number 52 - December
2, 2022
Article Link:
https://cpcml.ca/Tmld2022/Articles/D520523.HTM
Website: www.cpcml.ca Email: editor@cpcml.ca