UK energy storage system manufacturer Hyperdrive Innovation has become the first firm to secure a supply of lithium-ion cells and modules from Japanese vehicle OEM Nissan.
The deal with fellow Sunderland-based firm Nissan will allow the firm to launch a scalable 48V/66Ah, 3.5kWh ESS and use the cells in bespoke battery packs for electric motive applications.
Hyperdrive already provides packs for off-highway electric vehicles, and portable power applications.
It also has plans to produce residential and commercial/industrial scale UPS systems— with the company aiming for a below £500 ($623) per KWh price.
The move is a boon for Hyperdrive, which has previously sourced its lithium-ion cells from China and South Korea.
Steve Abbott, Hyperdrive’s business development manager, told BBB: “We have always preferred to use lithium-ion pouch cells because of their energy density. We have previously sourced these from the Far East, but there are challenges, from a lead-time, shipping and quality assessment point-of-view.
“So the Nissan connection guarantees a quality of cell with a local supply chain.”
He added that, depending on the supplier, cells sourced from the Far East could suffer with quality issues. Although he highlighted cells from South Korea were of a high standard.
Last year Hyperdrive manufactured 1,500 systems at its Sunderland plant, this year that number will be ‘significantly more’, and in the future the firm hopes to meet and surpass its 20,000 system a year capacity.
In series, the standard packs can be scaled up to 5-600V depending on capacity. No limit has been identified in the parallel configurations.
Nissan make pouch cells that they put in small modules, usually about four pouches per module, or cassette.
Abbott said: “Nissan with their batteries and battery management systems and vehicle programs, but they are open to supplying the cells for other applications and they needed a partner to do that.”
“So we take either the cassette or cells, although we prefer the cassettes, and build them into packs and either custom design, or put them into a standard pack, which means we can scale up depending on the power requirements of the customer.”
Hyperdrive is currently in talks with European companies regarding joint ventures, and with firms in the Far East and the US about potential licensing deals.