Dr. Edward Buiel Joins Axion as Chief of Research and Development.

WOODBRIDGE, Ontario -- Axion Power International, Inc. (OTCBB:AXPW) announced today that Dr. Edward Buiel has joined the company as its Chief of Research and Development.

Before joining Axion, Dr. Buiel served for 3-1/2 years as project leader for the Energy Storage Group of Meadwestvaco Corporation (NYSE:MWV), one of the largest producers of activated carbon in the world. In this position Dr. Buiel's team focused on developing activated carbon materials for electrochemical applications including Lithium-ion batteries, organic ultracapacitors, and asymmetric lead-carbon capacitors. His responsibilities included managing a USCAR-Advanced Battery Consortium (www.uscar.org) project to develop activated carbon materials for hybrid electric vehicle ("HEV") energy storage systems and managing a joint program with Sandia National Laboratories (www.sandia.gov) to develop lead-carbon capacitors for grid-connected energy storage systems. Previously, Dr. Buiel worked for nine months as a senior software engineer for Vasocor, Inc. and for 2-1/2 years as a Senior Research Engineer for the Automotive Carbon Group of Meadwestvaco Corporation. Dr. Buiel is a 1994 graduate of Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Engineering and Physics, and a 1998 graduate of Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, where he earned a PhD in Physics and wrote his doctoral thesis on "The Development of Disordered Carbon Materials as Anode Materials for Li-ion Battery Applications."

Commenting on Dr. Buiel's appointment, Thomas Granville, Axion's chief executive officer said: "We are thrilled to have Dr. Buiel choose Axion as we begin the transition from processing kilograms of carbon to processing metric tons of carbon. Ed's first project will be to direct procurement and installation for our planned carbon electrode manufacturing facility. This new facility, which should be operational by the first quarter of 2006, will give us the in-house ability to manufacture carbon electrodes for our application prototypes while generating ancillary revenue from third-party sales. We believe that Dr. Buiel's experience in activated carbon manufacturing will accelerate the development and commercialization timeline for our planned HEV energy storage systems by a minimum of 6 to 9 months. In addition, his long-standing working relationships with thought leaders at the USCAR Consortium and Sandia National Laboratories should prove invaluable as we refine our e3 Supercell technology and introduce application prototypes for HEV and grid-connected applications."

About Axion Power International, Inc.

Axion is developing a platform technology for a new generation of lead-acid-carbon energy storage devices called e3 Supercells. The e3 Supercell technology replaces the lead-based negative electrodes found in conventional lead-acid batteries with nanoporous carbon electrodes. The result is a new class of hybrid energy storage device that offers a unique combination of battery and supercapacitor performance characteristics. Axion believes e3 Supercells will offer a cost-effective alternative to conventional lead-acid batteries that will:

--Charge up to ten times faster;

--Offer three to four times as many charge/discharge cycles in deep discharge applications;

--Withstand repetitive 90% depth of discharge without significant loss of performance; and

--Require minimal maintenance.

Axion plans to develop e3 Supercells for:

--High performance energy storage systems for hybrid automobiles;

--Energy storage systems for other motive applications including industrial and transportation equipment;

--Uninterruptible power supplies and DC power systems; and

--Storage and buffering systems for grid-connected alternative and conventional power generation.

"Safe Harbor" Statement Under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995:

Certain statements in this Press Release are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are based on our current expectations and beliefs and are subject to a number of risk factors and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements. For a detailed description of the risk factors and uncertainties affecting the Company, please refer to our current and future filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, all of which are available at www.sec.gov.

For further information, please visit www.axionpower.com or contact:

Nazia Khan, Corporate Communications
   Axion Power International 905-264-1991
   [e-mail]

Note to Editors: In the text above the "3" in "e3" should be superscript.