German automotive components firm ElringKlinger is to launch its first battery production facility after clinching a deal worth “several hundred million euros”.
ElringKlinger told BBB the fully-automated facility had been planned for some time and would be “primarily used” to develop and produce modular lithium-ion battery systems for “fully-electric” solar vehicles under a contract awarded by Germany’s Sono Motors.
The purchase deal spans a “scheduled period” of eight years and production will start in the second half of 2019— although ElringKlinger is not yet revealing which of its existing sites in Germany will host the new facility.
A spokesperson for the company told BBB: “The battery production line will be procured and installed in the foreseeable future. The annual production capacity cannot be specified at this time. However, it will be sufficient to cover the Sono order.”
The battery systems “will be based on a 48V module that is capable of producing aggregate system voltages of up to 800V”, ElringKlinger said. “The modules, which include components such as the cell housing and the cell contact system, are controlled by a battery management system that monitors the voltage and the temperature of the individual battery cells, in addition to ensuring effective power supply.”
The batteries will give Munich-based Sono’s ‘Sion’ vehicle, to be launched next year, a range of 250 kilometres. ElringKlinger said the car “is targeted primarily at customers in urban areas”. “Its battery can be recharged either via the power supply grid or by means of solar cells integrated into the bodywork of the vehicle.”
ElringKlinger CEO Stefan Wolf said: “In securing this contract, we managed to convince a next-generation vehicle manufacturer of the innovation and performance offered by our battery technology.”
ElringKlinger has been mass-producing components for lithium-ion batteries, such as cell contact systems and module connectors, since 2011. They are used in various hybrid and battery-powered vehicles. In addition, the group develops and manufactures complete battery modules and systems as well as aggregate energy storage units.
The group has a production line for battery components at its headquarters in Dettingen/Erms, Germany.
