The US Department of Energy is set to provide $43million (£27.5million) funding to develop energy storage technologies for electric vehicles (EVs) in the States.

The department will support 19 new projects, focusing on innovations in battery management and storage for electric cars, through the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E).

Researchers will also work towards improving efficiency and reliability of the nation’s grid.

The projects are expected to help reduce costs and improve the performance of “next generation” storage technologies for EVs.

Steven Chu, US Secretary of Energy said: “This latest round of ARPA-E projects seek to address the remaining challenges in energy storage technologies, which could revolutionise the way Americans store and use energy in electric vehicles, the grid and beyond.

“These cutting-edge projects could transform our energy infrastructure, dramatically reduce our reliance on imported oil and increase American energy security.”