South Korean tech giant SK Innovation is reportedly launching commercial production of new batteries with higher nickel content to extend the distance electric vehicles can travel between charges.
According to Reuters, SK said it has developed a new range of NMC lithium-ion batteries composed of 80% nickel, 10% cobalt and 10% manganese— instead of current units with a nickel content of around 60%.
Meanwhile, The Korea Herald reported that SK’s new ‘NCM 811’ mid- and large-sized pouch-type batteries will be available for use in energy storage systems by the end of the year and supplied to automakers by the third quarter of 2018.
The batteries will be manufactured at SK’s Seosan facilities, where the company is building its fifth and sixth assembly lines to secure a total 3.9GWh of production capacity, the Herald said.
The daily quoted the principal researcher of SK’s Battery R&D Center Lee Jon-ha as saying the new batteries would “help extend the driving range of EVs up to 500 kilometres”. According to the paper, Lee said SK also plans to develop new batteries by 2020 that can provide a range of more than 700km.
In June, BBB reported that the Korean company aims to take nearly a third of the global battery market by 2025, when the rapidly-growing electric car battery market is expected to be demanding a total of 300GWh.