Gen 5 Batteries to Be Used for i4 and iX Models
Samsung SDI’s lithium-ion batteries will power Rolls-Royce's first electric vehicle. In 2020, Rolls-Royce laid out an electrification strategy, announcing it will launch a pure battery electric vehicle, not a hybrid vehicle, in the 2020s.
Rolls-Royce chose Samsung SDI because of its close partnership with Germany's BMW Group, which owns Rolls-Royce, analysts say. Samsung SDI also has various European carmakers as its customers, including Volkswagen Group, Volvo, Renault, and Jaguar Land Rover.
Samsung SDI recently started to roll out the next-generation battery "Gen 5" and this will be loaded into BMW's pure electric vehicles i4 and iX.
Industry insiders believe that Samsung SDI has an edge over its competitors in getting orders from luxury car brands such as Rolls-Royce, Lamborghini, and Porsche, which have started to move towards electrification. Samsung SDI is also supplying batteries to Lucid Motors, which is targeting the U.S. high-end electric vehicle market.