* Elbit seeks to adapt military tech to civilian applications
* Strong competition in developing battery-powered vehicles
* Electric bus market could be worth $100 bln in a decade - study
By Ari Rabinovitch
NETANYA, Israel, May 7 (Reuters) - For two decades, Israeli defence contractor Elbit Systems has designed some of the world's leading weapons systems. But now it has its sights set on a somewhat different market - electric buses.
This venture from Israel's largest listed defence company, whose drones and surveillance systems are top sellers around the world, is part of a broader strategy to use its military expertise to break into civilian markets.
It may seem a risky foray into a competitive market, but Elbit has a strong track record for adapting its technologies - often developed in secretive labs that employ cutting-edge research - into new applications.
Last year, for example, it unveiled a commercial product for airline pilots, a wearable head-up display called Skylens that assists in take-off and landings in low visibility conditions. It was based on a technology used by air force pilots.
This time the electronics company has landed on high-performance batteries suitable for electric buses, a growing market as public transport networks boom in places like China and providers look for alternatives to fossil fuels.
What electric buses need are supercapacitor batteries - efficient storage devices that can be rapidly charged, can deliver high power and have a long lifespan.
But the bus route had an unlikely starting point.
"We had looked into developing energy weapons, like high power lasers that would use supercapacitors. And from there we looked to branch out with other applications that have potential for financial growth," said Yehuda Borenstein, head of the company's energy systems unit.
Elbit would not disclose how much it is investing in the buses venture, or revenue forecasts, but it plans to have a commercially viable version ready by the end of 2016.
It is also working on a similar-style battery for a car starter motor, for which a pilot production line will be finished by the end of the year.
CHARGING
Since buses run along fixed routes for fixed amounts of time, the key is to be able to charge their batteries rapidly in the down-time, even in the pauses along a route.
The problem with supercapacitors, however, is their cost and their weight, which can be prohibitive.
Yet for those that manage to crack the problem, there is money to be made: the hybrid and electric bus market is still in its early stages, but it is expected to boom over the next decade to over $100 billion a year in terms of revenue, according to IDTechEx, a group that reasearches emerging technologies.