Axion to Discuss Battery Advances for Electric Vehicles at Hearing of US Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

NEW CASTLE, Pa., July 22 -- Axion Power International, Inc. (EBB: AXPW), announced today that it has accepted an invitation to appear as a witness at a Full Committee Hearing by the United States Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. The purpose of the hearing is to review the status of existing federal programs targeted at reducing gasoline demand in the near term as well as to discuss additional proposals for near term reductions.

Thomas Granville, Chief Executive Officer, and Dr. Edward Buiel, Vice President and Chief Technical Officer at Axion Power International, Inc. will testify at the hearing, which is scheduled to take place on Wednesday, July 23, 2008 at 09:45 AM.

Dr. Buiel will specifically discuss advances in battery development for vehicles, both Advanced Lead Acid and Li-ion. He will also discuss Axion's visions for both the electrification of the transportation system and the near term retrofitting of millions of inefficient vehicles to Electric Vehicles through the use of Advanced Lead Acid battery technology.

You may access further information and a live webcast to this hearing via the Internet at:

(Due to the length of the URL, please copy and paste into browser) http://energy.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Hearings.Hearing&Hearing_ ID=2ddbaa2a-d364-9134-b5a0-530960184930

About Axion Power International, Inc.

Axion has developed and patented a next generation energy storage device that won the prestigious 2006 Frost & Sullivan Technology Innovation Award for North America in the field of lead-acid batteries. According to Frost & Sullivan, Axion's new PbC batteries have "the potential to revitalize the lead-acid battery industry by breathing new life into an established technology that was not well-suited to the requirements of important new applications like hybrid electric vehicles and renewable power."

PbC(TM) batteries use sophisticated carbon electrode assemblies to replace the simple lead-based negative electrodes used by other lead-acid battery manufacturers. The resulting device offers energy storage approaching lead acid batteries, coupled with far longer cycle life and power output approaching super-capacitors. These low-cost devices recharge rapidly and are environmentally friendly because they use 40% less lead. Axion has been producing prototype PbC batteries at its lead-acid battery plant in New Castle, Pennsylvania for more than a year using the same cases, positive electrodes, separators, electrolytes and manufacturing equipment used in its other lead-acid battery lines. The only notable manufacturing difference is the use of Axion's proprietary carbon electrode assemblies instead of lead-based negative electrodes.

Axion's goal is to become the leading supplier of carbon electrode assemblies for the lead-acid battery industry.