The battery cell manufacturer SVOLT Energy Technology, which emerged from the Chinese carmaker Great Wall, has for the first time presented its cobalt-free lithium-ion battery cell (NMx) as well as the four-element lithium-ion battery cell (NCMA).
According to the company, the cobalt-free NMx cell of the emerging battery manufacturer is in no way inferior to the performance of an NCM-811 cell. At the same time, the costs of materials should be reduced by 5 to 15 percent and the unit costs of the cells by up to 5 percent. Further details such as the materials used or the structure of the cell were not mentioned by SVOLT - nor was a date for launching the market.
The NCMA cells should also outperform the NCM-811 cells in many areas. According to SVOLT they have a longer service life, have better heat resistance and are supposed to be safer, which is to be reflected on a battery level in a higher capacity with improved durability and safety. Here, too, the company does not cite any further data - such as how high the proportion of aluminum added to the cathode is or how much cobalt is still present.
For NCMA cathodes, aluminum is added to the usual mixture of nickel, cobalt and manganese. The share of nickel can rise up to 90 percent, which would further reduce the proportion of controversial materials such as cobalt. An NCM 811 cathode still contains 10 percent cobalt.
However, what SVOLT officially confirmed at the Baoding event is the recent leak of plans to build a factory in Europe. Last week, Reuters reported that the construction of the European plant, whose exact location is not yet certain, should begin in the second half of 2020 and 2022 be completed. Now, the company has announced an investment of two billion euros in the construction of the 24 GWh factory. An exact location was not announced.
Sources: businesswire.com Author: Sebastian Schaal
