Nissan is stepping up the solid battery game

Battery technology development is a key battleground for EV makers. Nissan just announced the opening of their prototype production facility, where it intends to develop further solid-state batteries.

Nissan embarked on an ambitious journey in electrification of the automotive market with a long term strategy called Nissan Ambition 2030. Part of that plan is to launch an EV with in-house developed solid state battery by 2028. To achieve that goal not only the battery is needed but the entire manufacturing has to be developed as well. And that’s where the new facility comes in. Nissan plans to have a pilot production line in place by 2024 at its Yokohama Plant, the new facility will be used for development of manufacturing processes, materials and design.

Nissan believes that with this new facility can bring the costs of the batteries down to a level that would make EV manufacturing comparable to ICE vehicles. The company recons it will get there when it reaches $65 per kWh, Nissan hopes to achieve $75 by 2028 which will mean they will need more work to bridge that gap.

The push for development of solid state batteries is happening for a simple reason - their density is about twice that of the lithium-ion battery, the charging times are much shorter and above all, once all the development hurdles are out of the way, the cost of those batteries is significantly lower. Another argument is that solid state batteries use less rare materials which obviously is good for the planet.

Expectations are high, Kunio Nakaguro who is a vice president of Nissan in charge of R&D said the following:

“ Nissan has been a leader in electrification technology through a wide range of R&D activities, from molecular-level battery material research to the development of safe, high-performance EVs. Our initiatives even include city development using EVs as storage batteries. The knowledge gained from our experience supports the development of all-solid-state batteries and we’ve accumulated important elemental technologies. Going forward, our R&D and manufacturing divisions will continue to work together to utilize this prototype production facility and accelerate the practical application of all-solid-state batteries.“

The future is bright, electric cars that can be charged in minutes are coming, soon the sound of ICE will be all forgotten and the world will be a happy, green place. If we put Nissan in charge. Sustainable society is an amazing idea, EVs acting as storage for the grid electricity - brilliant. Hurry up future!

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