Japanese manufacturer Nissan has made it clear that it sees electric power as the future of the automotive industry – and now it is working on a lithium-ion battery that can power an electric car for 190 miles on a single charge.

According to reports in the Nikkei, the distance would be nearly double the range of the LEAF, Nissan’s first all-electric car that is scheduled to go on sale in late 2010 across Japan, the United States and Europe. Now, Nissan hopes to have the new battery ready to be incorporated in electric vehicles by 2015.

The incredible advancement has been achieved by adding nickel and cobalt to the main material of a lithium-ion battery’s positive electrode, manganese. The enhanced battery can store about twice as much electricity as batteries with positive electrodes that are only made from manganese.

Reports in the Nikkei suggest that the battery will be robust enough for practical use and able to withstand about 1,000 charge cycles. The company estimates that the battery will cost about the same as regular lithium-ion batteries to produce as it only contains a small amount of the expensive cobalt.

The news follows on from company chief executive Carlos Ghosn’s declaration that Nissan would make rechargeable batteries for electric cars a “core business” at the Tokyo Motor Show.