Unveils Industry's First Lithium Metal Battery
Solid Energy System (SES), a U.S. battery startup which received investments from Korean conglomerates, including Hyundai Motor, SK and LG, has unveiled its next-generation lithium metal battery, which it aims to commercialize by 2025.
The company currently has its headquarters in Singapore and test production facilities and research institutes in Boston of the United States and Shanghai of China.
SES held the First SES Battery World, an online event for media outlets and investors on Nov. 4 (U.S. local time) and introduced Apollo, a 107Ah lithium metal battery. This product was introduced as an intermediate product between current lithium-ion batteries containing liquid electrolytes and all-solid-state batteries. This marked the first time a lithium metal battery of more than 100Ah has been introduced to the world, SES explained.
The Apollo battery weighs only 0.982 kg and has a thin and long square shape. Its energy density is 417Wh per kilogram, which is up to three times that of lithium-ion batteries commonly used for electric vehicles. It can be charged very fast -- it takes only 12 minutes to charge the battery from 10 percent to 90 percent. If an electric vehicle powered by a lithium-ion battery runs about 400 km on one single change, one powered by a lithium metal battery of the same capacity can travel about 700 km.
SES aims to commercialize the Apollo battery in 2025. In addition, it is conducting tests on Sample A batteries to be used for electric vehicles of Hyundai Motor and General Motors (GM), with which it signed joint development agreements (JDAs). The jointly developed battery will be disclosed next year. After completing tests of Sample B batteries by 2023 and Sample C batteries by 2024, it will start volume production of Sample D batteries in earnest in 2025.
Noting that Korean and Chinese battery companies are currently leading the global market, SES said it will build a supply chain and manufacturing network centered on Korea and China. By 2023, the company will set up Shanghai Giga, a pilot lithium metal battery manufacturing facility with an annual production capacity of 1 GWh, in Shanghai, China.