* EV studies triggered by California zero-emission programme
* Slow infrastructure may mean not enough fuel-cell car sales
* GS Yuasa could be partner for lithium-ion batteries for EVs
* Dollar below 90 yen "too painful"
By Chang-Ran Kim and Yoshifumi Takemoto
TOKYO, Oct 1 (Reuters) - Honda Motor is looking into developing pure electric vehicles because slow progress in setting up hydrogen fuelling stations could limit the sale of its fuel-cell vehicles, the head of Japan's No.2 automaker said.
Honda has been a strong proponent of hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles as the most promising zero-emission alternative to today's combustion engine cars, dismissing plug-in electric cars as a short-range option that uses too many expensive batteries.
But in the strongest indication yet that Honda may be changing its tune, Chief Executive Takanobu Ito said Honda may need pure electric cars to meet California's regulations for automakers to offer a certain ratio of zero-emission cars in the coming years.
"I don't doubt for a second that fuel-cell vehicles are the ultimate green car," Ito told Reuters in an interview on Thursday, noting that such hydrogen-fuelled vehicles achieved a driving range similar to that of gasoline cars.
"But the infrastructure for hydrogen is moving slowly, and there's a possibility we won't be able to get sufficient sales volumes (in California), even if we tried."
Ito stopped short of saying whether or when Honda would actually launch a plug-in electric vehicle (EV). Domestic rivals Toyota Motor Corp and Nissan Motor Co have announced plans to offer EVs globally by 2012.
If the need arose, Honda could work with battery partner GS Yuasa Corp to develop lithium-ion batteries for electric cars, Ito said.
Honda currently has a joint venture with GS Yuasa to produce batteries specifically for hybrid vehicles. GS Yuasa has separately partnered Mitsubishi Motors Corp and other Mitsubishi firms for EV batteries.
In the next 20 to 30 years, Ito said he expected virtually all cars to be hybridised, while for the nearer, five- to 10-year term, Honda would pour much of its efforts into improving fuel economy on pure gasoline cars.
Ito, who took his post in late June, said the remodelled Step Wgn minivan, to be launched in Japan next week, was an example of that, with a larger body but better mileage than its predecessor.
DOLLAR BELOW 90 YEN "TOO PAINFUL"
Turning to Honda's overall business, Ito noted the automaker was barely forecasting a profit this year, lamenting the dollar's fall below 90 yen this week.
"We're in pretty dire straits already right now," he said. "A dollar-yen in the 80s would be too painful."
Honda has set its dollar rate assumption for the second half of the financial year, from October to March, at 90 yen, forecasting an operating profit in the period of 80 billion yen ($890 million) thanks largely to the relatively healthy motorcycle business.
The dollar was trading around 89.90 yen on Thursday, after hitting an eight-month low of 88.23 yen on trading platform EBS earlier this week. (Editing by Chris Gallagher)