Electric-car batteries rated for Sydney to Melbourne already in China

01/04/2025 06:46 PM

Solid-state battery technology has been mooted as the ‘next big thing’ for electric cars electric cars – including the world's largest car company Toyota, which it says will enable electric cars to offer as much as 1200km driving range from a single, must faster charge.

In the meantime – as all-solid-state batteries remains some years away from showrooms – car makers in China are looking to a new, stepping-stone development in the urgent race to get better tech into showrooms: semi-solid state batteries.

As with the lithium-ion batteries in EVs today, solid-state packs transport ions between anodes and cathodes inside the battery cell using what is known as an electrolyte.

But the main selling point is that, rather than liquid, solid-state batteries use – as the name suggests – solid electrolytes.

Removing the liquid is said to make solid-state packs significantly smaller and lighter than existing batteries – which occupy a considerable space inside the car, and can add as much as half a tonne.

And once the technology is commercialised, solid-state batteries are also said to be cheaper to manufacture – with the battery currently the most expensive single component of an electric car – meaning reduced sticker prices in showrooms.

Japanese car maker Honda claims the tech will halve the size of an electric car's battery, reducing weight by around 35 per cent while – eventually – cutting the cost by 25 per cent.

This could, in theory, kill-off the two of the most cited objections for motorists against buying an electric car: range and price.

Honda announced it would begin manufacturing solid-state batteries for research in January 2025 but says it won't be finished testing until 2030 – meaning no showroom models using the tech until then.

That's a world away given the volatility of technology development and the regulatory environment – from government incentives to emissions laws – across the globe.

Mercedes-Benz and Hyundai are working with US firm Factorial on solid-state batteries, claiming as much as 80 per cent more driving range, but these brands are some years away from fitting the tech to showroom models.

While development progresses, it now seems a bridge to solid-state battery tech may already be in Chinese showrooms: the semi solid-state battery.

A combination of the two technologies – the existing use of liquid electrodes along with a solid portion, instead of being completely liquid or solid – semi solid-state tech still brings benefits over lithium-ion batteries but is already on sale overseas.

The IM L6 – due in MG Australia showrooms later this year – uses semi-solid-state battery tech rated to deliver a 1002km driving range under CLTC (China Light-Duty Vehicle Test Cycle) protocols.

Electric cars in Australia often quote Europe’s WLTP electric range standard – Worldwide Harmonized Light Vehicle Test Procedure – which can be as much as 20 per cent lower than CLTC figures, meaning the L6 may deliver closer to 800km using this approach.

That's still more than the longest-range electric car in Australian showrooms, the Polestar 3 Long Range Single Motor, rated for 706km WLTP.

Chinese brand Nio worked with WeLion New Energy Technology Company in its development of semi-solid-state batteries.

It unveiled the Nio ET7 in 2023 with a 1050km CLTC range CLTC, demonstrated by its Nio CEO William Li and Nio Power director Shen Fei driving one 1044km across China, albeit it in a slow-and-steady 14 hours.

WeLion says its semi solid-state batteries have an energy density more than 60 per cent greater than lithium-iron phosphate (LFP) batteries – though this chemistry, as seen in BYD and entry-level Teslas, is not as energy dense as the nickel-manganese-cobalt (NMC) type used in the Polestar.

Semi-solid-state batteries can also be produced on the same production lines as lithium-ion versions, reducing manufacturing both time and financial investment to put into production.

Dodge has announced it is fitting semi solid-state batteries – also with Factorial – in a batch of Dodge Charger electric cars for testing and 'demonstration' in 2026 as a step towards full solid-state batteries.

With Dodge part of Stellantis – a company owning more than a dozen auto brands, including Ferrari, Alfa Romeo, Peugeot, Jeep, Chrysler and Ram Trucks – the test could accelerate battery advances for a host of brands.

According to Car News China, MG has reportedly said it will use semi-solid-state batteries in a new model in 2025.

While yet to be confirmed by MG, almost every car maker is working on – or with – partners on advanced battery tech, with semi-solid-state coming to the fore as a more ready solution to an urgent topic.

Further battery advancements continue, with CATL (Contemporary Amperex Technology Company Limited) – the world's leading battery maker – unveiling advanced versions of lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries in 2024.

These included 'right now' tech specifically tailored for use in hybrid vehicles, given their rise in popularity amid a cooling in demand for battery-only cars.

CATL boss 'Battery King' Dr Robin Zeng has claimed solid-state batteries still need further development – despite more than a decade of development – though some have pointed out the executive has a vested interest in the success of current-generation technology.

Launching in 2025, BYD – which is second only to CATL in terms of battery manufacturing output, in addition to its car-making operations – announced its more efficient 'Blade 2' lithium-iron phosphate (LFP) battery it aims to make 15 per cent cheaper.

Other car makers aren't waiting for suppliers to make gains, either; Toyota, for example, bought PEVE (Primearth Electric Vehicle Energy Company) in March 2024, renaming it Toyota Battery Company.

Revolution, then, appears to make way for evolution.

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