Johnson Controls-Saft has a new 5 year supply agreement with Azure Dynamics, Inc. Under the contract, Johnson Controls-Saft will supply Azure Dynamics with 20,000 lithium-ion batteries to power hybrid delivery trucks and other commercial vehicles. The battery cells will be produced at Saft’s plant in France and then shipped to the US, where Johnson Controls will assemble them into a hybrid battery. The first of these batteries should be on the road in 2010.

TradingMarkets.com has more on the deal:

Financial terms of the agreement weren’t disclosed, and it’s too early to say how many jobs could be added in Glendale, headquarters of the Johnson Controls hybrid battery business.

"We don’t know yet, but it does mean jobs," said Alex Molinaroli, president of the power solutions business at Johnson Controls.

The announcement comes as suppliers and hybrid battery developers are touting new vehicles and contracts this week as the North American International Auto Show in Detroit prepares to open to the public.