Batteries

• [New] Chinese tech group QingTao will in 2022 kick off its efforts in solid-state batteries as part of a US$150 mln investment in various EV battery developments.
• [New] Sales in China of so-called new energy vehicles (NEVs), which include battery electric, plug-in hybrid and hydrogen fuel-cell cars, are expected to grow 30-40% to around 1.8 million units in 2021.
• [New] Apple Car production is expected to begin in 2024 with a breakthrough battery technology that offers longer range and also lower cost.
• [New] Chile's state mining agency, Cochilco, projects lithium demand to increase to 1.79 million tons per year by 2030.
• More than 250 new models of battery electric vehicles (BEV) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) will be introduced in the next two years alone, and as many as 130 million EVs could be sharing roads the world over by 2030.
• Demand for the raw material is expected to surge in the coming years while EV adoption gains pace across the world.
• Tesla's rise, the advance in EV batteries, and the drop in battery prices will help Tesla in the next couple of years and end the parity with gas cars in Tesla's favor and in the favor of electric cars.
• Lithium demand in the battery sector will grow from 170 kt last year, to 456 kt in five years, to 849 kt by the close of the decade.
• If countries around the world increase their investment in wind, solar and battery in the next few years, the price of renewable energy will continue to decline.
• Volkswagen AG plans to introduce eight ID series electric models in China by 2023, while Daimler AG, the maker of Mercedes-Benz luxury cars, has launched the EQC electric SUV and plans to expand its lineup of purely battery-powered vehicles to at least 10 in coming years.
• Barra unveiled plans to spur electrification last month by boosting GM's spending on EVs 35% to US$ 27 billion and pledging to push out 30 battery-powered models by 2025.
• Panasonic will begin production as early as 2021 of prototypes of a new, cheaper type of battery for Tesla electric vehicles.
• On average, battery packs now cost $US137 / kWh, BloombergNEF reports, and by 2023, the average price will hit $US101 / kWh.
• LG and GM set up a joint venture to manufacture Ultium batteries by 2022.
• A LEAF manufactured in Japan that uses battery cells made in Japan is exempt from EU tariffs while a LEAF manufactured in the UK that uses battery cells made in Japan will be subject to a 10% tariff in 6 years.
• In the next decade, electric vehicles, heat pumps and battery storage systems will increasingly become the norm in households and businesses.
• Apple is working on its own self-driving car technology with plans to produce a passenger vehicle that could include new battery technology by 2024.
• Apple is pursuing production of a passenger vehicle by 2024 as well as the creation of self-driving systems and a breakthrough battery technology.
• Apple Inc is moving forward with self-driving car technology and is targeting 2024 to produce a passenger vehicle that could include its own breakthrough battery technology.
• The plants of Mercedes-Benz AG, including the global battery production network, will already produce on a CO 2 - neutral basis around the world starting 2022.

Last updated: 17 January 2021