Tsukuba Center in Tsukuba City, Japan. (Wikimedia Commons Creative Commons Licensed photo)

CNET.com is reporting that a Japanese town near Tokyo is about to become a test community for cars that run mainly on solar energy.

According to CNET, through a partnership with Mazda, Think Global, EnerDel, and Japanese conglomerate Itochu among others, Tsukuba City will be testing cars that rely on solar-generated electricity for their batteries, which will be rapid-charged at stations at local FamilyMart stores.

Mazda2 vehicles (known as the Mazda Demio in Japan) have been outfitted with all-electric drive trains made by Think containing EnerDel lithium ion batteries.

Solar panels attached to stationary grid-storage units designed by EnerDel will also have rapid-charging stations for the all-electric cars, reports CNET. The stationary storage units, gleaning and storing electricity from solar panels, will supply almost entirely solar-generated electricity for the cars.

For the full CNET.com story, go to -->
http://news.cnet.com/8301-11128_3-20004873-54.html

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