| From: Eric | 3/14/2024 12:13:23 PM | | | | | | Charged by the IRA, U.S. expected to outpace Europe in lithium-ion battery cells
Global manufacturing of lithium-ion battery cells is expected to triple between 2022 and 2025, according to a report from Clean Energy Associates.
March 8, 2024 Ryan Kennedy
A researcher at the University of Tennessee examines a lithium-ion battery.
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Worldwide, production of lithium-ion battery cells is expanding rapidly. Electric vehicles are the dominant driver of demand, and both home energy storage and grid-scale batteries are expected to contribute as well.
A report from Clean Energy Associates (CEA) outlined that by 2025, global manufacturing of lithium-ion battery (LIB) cells is expected to triple from 2022 levels. It said the U.S. is expected to produce more battery cells than the European Union, largely due to incentives created by the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022.
“The IRA attracted outsized investments in domestic cell production capacity with $35 per kWh tax credit available and bolstered by an additional $10 per kWh tax credit for assembled modules,” said the report.
CEA is a manufacturing quality assurance firm with insight into global battery energy storage systems supply chains. Its Q4 2023 report focuses on emerging trends in this space.
While the U.S. and Europe have a sizeable share of the global LIB battery production supply chain, it is still heavily dominated by China, said the report.
CEA said the U.S. has taken an “aggressive approach” to LIB supply chain expansion, offering a “raft of incentives” via the Inflation Reduction Act. However, upstream legs of the supply chain take a long time to set up, with brine mining, refinement, separators, and more requiring considerable time to reach operations. CEA said western markets need “a sense of urgency” if supply chain diversification is a desired goal.
CEA said collapsing lithium prices has led to a cooling-off in demand for chemical alternatives to the mainstream nickel manganese cobalt (NMC) and lithium-ferro-phosphate (LFP) chemistries. This leads to a negative impact on commercialization for new technologies like sodium-ion batteries. However, CEA said more evolutionary chemistries like lithium manganese iron phosphate (LMFP) may find their way into electric vehicles and energy storage sectors as early as 2025.
Growth in midstream production capacity is helping push cost reductions for LIB cells, said the report. Cathode active materials and anode active materials are being produced with increasing capacity, lowering the overall cost of batteries.
The report said that supply chain growth is outpacing demand as major economies aim public policy at localization of battery cell and cell subcomponent production assets.
A report from Goldman Sachs forecasts a 40% reduction in battery pack prices over 2023 and 2024, followed by a continued decline to reach a total 50% reduction by 2025-2026. Goldman predicts that these price reductions will make electric vehicles as affordable as gasoline-powered vehicles, leading to increased demand.
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| From: Eric | 3/19/2024 9:27:59 PM | | | | | | What’s in store for storage?
InfoLink’s global lithium ion battery supply chain database indicates that the energy storage market experienced a severe surplus and a growing price war in 2023. Despite these forces, market momentum is supporting relatively rapid expansion.
March 19, 2024 Robin Song
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From pv magazine print edition 3/24
The world gained 110 GWh of energy storage in 2023, up 149% from 2022. The scaling of demand in China, the United States, and Europe accounted for more than 90% of the global market.
In China, several provinces are strengthening storage policies to stimulate growth in utility-based, front-of-the-meter (FTM) storage. In the world’s largest energy storage market, China, storage capacity reached 52 GWh in 2023, up 229% year over year.
The United States experienced a bumpier ride. A shortage of transformers disrupted the energy storage industrial chain, while project approval procedures remained complicated, resulting in severe project and grid-connection delays. Policy made an impact, with a US Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) tax credit significantly increasing the economic efficiency of storage projects. The United States gained 25.8 GWh of storage in 2023, up 112% year on year.
Europe gained 21.8 GWh of storage in 2023, up 117%, driven by residential and FTM projects. Residential batteries are still consuming surplus inventory. In Italy, the extension to the end of March 2023 for the 110% tax-deduction “superbonus” for renovations, saw home storage installations peak in the first quarter before falling markedly. Italy installed 2.7 GWh of storage in 2023, up 35% year on year.
Germany added 4.6 GWh of storage in 2023, for an annual rise of 142%. Batteries peaked in June before falling every month thereafter due to a sluggish economy, falling electricity prices, and a related fall in the home storage business case.
Policy reforms regarding the European Union power market are expected to push other European Union member states to include energy storage as part of their energy planning, which will further drive demand.
Big shipments
Some 196.7 GWh of battery cells were shipped in 2023, up 61% year on year. Utility-scale and commercial and industrial shipments were 168.5 GWh, up 67%. Small-scale-related shipments transported 28.14 GWh, up 27.9%. The market fell short of expectations for the high-season fourth quarter, with shipments up only 1.3% from July 2023 to September 2023.
Of the battery manufacturers, CATL remained dominant, with more than 70 GWh of cells shipped. BYD and Eve Energy both topped 25 GWh and REPT and Hithium both shipped more than 15 GWh. Those big five players cornered 76.7% of the market in 2023, up from 68.7% in 2022, thanks to successful cost controls. The battery companies ranked sixth to tenth shipped less than 10 GWh each in 2023, ensuring the top 10 accounted for 92% of the market, up from 86.7% in 2022. South Korean manufacturers Samsung SDI and LG shipped a total of almost 14 GWh in 2023, down 7% year on year.
Breaking down total battery cell shipments, CATL, BYD, Eve Energy, Hithium, and REPT were the top five for utility scale energy storage shipments in 2023, with CATL topping 65 GWh of shipments and its biggest rival less than 22 GWh. With utility-scale storage cell costs falling below CNY 0.40 ($0.06)/Wh, manufacturers with better cost control and financing can still invest in cell technology R&D. Amid increasing competition, big cell makers are introducing large capacity cells utilizing stacking technology and moving toward systems integrated with direct-current side energy storage, in order to differentiate their products.
Severe competition
CATL, REPT, Eve Energy, BYD, and Great Power shipped the most small-scale storage cells in 2023 and cornered 85.1% of the market, up from 84.7% year on year. Competition was severe. CATL, including ATL joint venture Ampace, held more than 25% of the market. Their chief competitors had 12% to 17% each. The market grew only 27.7% between 2022 and 2023, thanks to small-scale storage inventory pile-up. That slowdown is expected to last until late March 2024 or early April 2024, based on current inventory depletion, with shipments to pick up from June 2024.
Chinese companies made up the world’s top five battery cell makers in 2023, with LG and Samsung emerging as the only non-Chinese operators in the top 10. Shipment numbers for 2023 underscored the confidence of big manufacturers in overseas expansion. Chinese cell makers plan to develop about 579 GWh of annual production capacity overseas, according to InfoLink’s global lithium ion battery supply chain database. That includes 353.4 GWh from production lines in Europe and 144 GWh in the United States, as well as electric vehicles. InfoLink expects more than 250 GWh of cell capacity overseas from Chinese companies by 2026. The resulting market share grab will help Chinese companies to circumvent domestic manufacturing policies, which could put rivals from South Korea and other nations under pressure.
Looking ahead, as inventory levels gradually decrease, prices across the industrial energy storage supply chain will stabilize. That development, coupled with supportive policies, means InfoLink expects the global energy storage market to sustain growth at a medium to high pace. The global expansion of energy storage installations is projected to grow at a rate of 50% to 165 GWh per year, while energy storage cell shipments will expand by 35% to 266 GWh.
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About the author: Robin Song is an energy storage analyst at InfoLink Consulting, focusing on lithium ion battery supply and demand analysis. He also provides insights on energy storage market trends. He previously worked for a leading lithium ion battery manufacturer, where he provided market and investment analysis. |
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| From: Eric | 3/22/2024 9:43:38 PM | | | | | | German utility to build 280 MWh battery at former nuclear plant
German municipal utility Westfalen Weser is looking to develop a 120 MW/280 MWh battery storage facility at the site of a former nuclear power plant in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia.
March 22, 2024 Marija Maisch
The Wuergassen nuclear plant
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While announcements of battery energy storage projects developed at former coal plants are not unheard of, developing big batteries at former nuclear power plant sites has been uncommon. But, with its last nuclear reactors shut down in April 2023, Germany is now taking the lead on this new type of development.
Municipal energy supplier Westfalen Weser has announced plans to develop a 120 MW/280 MWh battery energy storage system at a former nuclear power plant site in Würgassen, North Rhine-Westphalia. As the utility said this week, the town of Beverungen has handed over the land to Westfalen Weser.
The 1,912 MW Würgassen nuclear power plant was operated by PreussenElektra, both prior to and during decommissioning. Commercial operations began in 1975. The plant was shut down in 1994, after which all fuel elements were removed.
Just like decommissioned coal power plants, retired nuclear reactors are attractive locations for the development of grid-scale battery energy storage systems. They offer the opportunity to reuse existing infrastructure and grid interconnection rights.
Westfalen Weser has confirmed this, saying that the retired Würgassen plant is particularly suitable for a battery storage facility because it has the needed infrastructure in place, including a transformer station and corresponding lines. The facility is scheduled for completion in the second half of 2026, with investments totaling around €92 million ($99.6 million).
“We are investing in energy storage to ensure a secure and efficient power supply as the generation of renewable energies continues to increase,” said Jürgen Noch, the municipal utility’s managing director.
Westfalen Weser sees other potential applications for energy storage in the future. These include the direct connection of local renewable energy generators such as wind power and PV systems, as well as the on-site consumption of stored energy. For example, larger consumers could be supplied with CO2-neutral energy from a locally independent grid, or green hydrogen could be produced, the utility said.
Therefore, Westfalen Weser expects battery energy storage capacity in the Ostwestfalen-Lippe region to increase more than 12-fold to around 1 GWh, as the country continues to grow its battery fleet.
Recent analysis from the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy shows that the installed base of battery storage nearly doubled last year, up from 4.4 GW/6.5 GWh of cumulative installs by the end of 2022 to 7.6 GW/11.2 GWh by the end of 2023. The institute said that storage requirements in Germany will rise to more than 130 GWh by 2030.
Another large-scale battery is also planned on a former nuclear power plant site in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein. PreussenElektra and its parent company, E.ON, are looking to eventually develop an 800 MW/1,600 MWh storage facility, which would make it Europe’s largest battery energy storage facility.
PreussenElektra is currently still waiting to secure a permit to decommission and dismantle the Brokdorf nuclear plant. It applied for it in 2017. The power plant stopped operating on Dec. 31, 2021.
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My comments:
As more and more fossil fueled generating plants (coal, NG , oil fired) and Nukes are retired there is a huge opportunity to take advantage of those large, dead ended grid connections.
Ripe for massive battery storage installations.
Along with RE buildout tied in.
Eric |
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| From: Eric | 3/29/2024 7:43:50 PM | | | | | | Weekend read: Can anything topple lithium-ion?
The need for long-duration energy storage in a net-zero world is undeniable but with conventional battery prices tumbling, can anything dislodge the mainstream grip of lithium ion? S&P Global’s Susan Taylor provides an update on non-lithium storage technologies.
March 30, 2024 pv magazine
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From pv magazine print edition 3/24
A perfect storm of lithium supply shocks, manufacturing repatriation efforts, and higher clean energy ambitions have highlighted the need for energy storage alternatives to lithium-ion batteries.
Long-duration storage will increasingly be required for grids as global clean power generation increases. Many alternatives to lithium ion offer lower life-cycle costs, better safety, easier maintenance, and, notably, less dependence on critical raw materials.
Lithium ion currently supplies more than 90% of the world’s energy storage capacity, mainly in short-duration, two- to four-hour applications. Eight-hour-plus storage is in relatively low demand, as renewables dominate in only a handful of locations.
Long-duration alternatives
There is no established long-term business model for long-duration storage either, but 2023 was a record year for long-duration storage procurement and non-lithium support schemes and strategic partnerships. The U.S. Department of Energy and the California Energy Commission, a state planning body, announced funding for more-than-10-hour, non-lithium energy storage. The United Kingdom is backing novel approaches for more-than-six-hour storage, including compressed air energy storage (CAES), flow batteries, liquid air energy storage (LAES), and pumped hydro storage (PHS).
Agreements have been made between utilities and non-lithium energy storage providers in the last year. In Germany, for instance, utilities are considering iron-zinc batteries and CAES to repurpose spent coal mines.
Other, technology agnostic, long duration energy storage procurement plans have also been announced recently. Such funding exercises, while attractive to alternative energy-storage approaches, also offer lithium-ion projects the chance to be eligible for support.
Australia launched a long-duration energy storage tender for 2 GW worth of eight-hour-plus projects. Of the three announced winners to date, two are lithium-ion projects and one is CAES. More recently, Italy announced a 9 GW procurement for eight-hour duration storage, to be held at the end of 2024. The relevant documents mention lithium ion and PHS as key contenders. Historically, it had been thought that scaling lithium ion up to such storage duration would not be cost effective. Over the past year, however, fierce competition between lithium-ion suppliers in China, and falling metals prices have been driving down lithium-ion costs, creating competition at storage durations previously thought to be uneconomic for the mainstream technology. Six-to-eight-hour lithium-ion projects have already been seen in China, the United States, and Australia, and make up more than 50% of all planned storage projects with a duration of more than six hours. This adds an extra challenge for alternative technologies that aim to compete at that specification.
 
Another key challenge for many non-lithium storage approaches is the lack of manufacturing scale that lithium-ion battery makers leverage from the electric vehicle (EV) industry. The rising popularity of EVs has enabled dramatic lithium-ion cost reductions over the past decade.
Non-lithium storage technology that can leverage existing supply chains from adjacent industries in the same way lithium ion has – CAES, LAES, sodium-ion batteries, and gravity storage, for instance – are well placed to scale production.
The components and equipment used for CAES, for example, have several decades worth of track record using off-the-shelf turbomachinery from the power generation industry. Existing supply chains for CAES are already well established.
Sodium-ion tech
Another notable development in the energy storage space is the growing number of sodium ion manufacturing announcements. Sodium ion technology benefits from well-established component supply chains and similar manufacturing processes to lithium ion. The much lower raw material cost of sodium means sodium-ion batteries could, at scale, achieve a lower cost than lithium ion at durations even beyond eight hours. Proof of commercial projects and a ramp-up of manufacturing production needs to develop further for that to happen. The first 100 MWh sodium-ion project announcement in China is a sign of rapid movement in that direction already.
Technology that only serves the energy storage industry may struggle to scale up manufacturing cost-effectively for more bespoke components, especially if suppliers are competing with lithium ion.
Looking ahead, a fundamental need for long-duration storage solutions far beyond eight-hour duration is inevitable if fossil fuel-based grid flexibility is to be phased out and renewables are to account for the majority of power generation. It is critical that grid flexibility requirements are determined in advance of such a need actually arising. That will require dedicated flexibility assessments at a system level, something which we have already seen positive steps toward in Europe’s electricity market reform in 2023.
Inherent challenges also need to be overcome to create a long-term business case for long duration storage solutions, which will become increasingly important as renewables reach a tipping point in energy generation and therefore require multi-day storage solutions.
The persistent price competition that is leading to a reduction of lithium system costs poses a significant hurdle for alternative technology as suppliers strive to compete with the established approach. Further strategic partnerships and long-duration procurement plans will continue to drive future pipelines of non-lithium energy storage solutions, with those able to scale most effectively and prove commercial projects at scale taking a greater market share.
About the author: Susan Taylor is a senior research analyst with the commodity insights team at S&P Global. She provides research coverage on energy storage markets across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, with a focus on emerging technology and cross-sector integration. She previously worked as an analyst with the policy team at the European Association for Storage of Energy, in Brussels.
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| From: Eric | 4/5/2024 5:12:42 PM | | | | | | Why This Ultra Dense Battery Breakthrough Matters
Undecided with Matt Ferrell
1.37M subscribers
It might surprise you to learn that the basic chemistry of the lithium ion battery at the heart of a brand new Tesla or iPhone hasn’t changed all that much in the last 30 years. So, when several of you left comments pointing me in the direction of a new company that’s replacing a key part of the battery with silicon and some nanowires, my curiosity was piqued.
To add to that, one of my science advisory team members brought them up, too, which only added fuel to the curiosity fire. Now, we’ve covered a lot of batteries on this channel, so what makes the company Amprius, and other similar companies going after silicon, stand out for the future of battery tech?
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| From: Eric | 4/6/2024 5:52:42 PM | | | | | | Weekend Read: A battery worth its salt
While lithium ion battery prices are falling again, interest in sodium ion (Na-ion) energy storage has not waned. With a global ramp-up of cell manufacturing capacity under way, it remains unclear whether this promising technology can tip the scales on supply and demand.
April 6, 2024 Marija Maisch
Northvolt unveiled 160 Wh/kg-validated sodium ion battery cells in November 2023 and says it is now working to scale up the supply chain for battery-grade Na-ion materials.
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Sodium ion batteries are undergoing a critical period of commercialization as industries from automotive to energy storage bet big on the technology. Established battery manufacturers and newcomers are jostling to get from lab to fab with a viable alternative to lithium ion. With the latter standard for electric mobility and stationary storage, new technology must offer proven advantages. Sodium ion looks well placed, with superior safety, raw material costs, and environmental credentials.
Sodium ion devices do not need critical materials, relying on abundant sodium instead of lithium, and no cobalt or nickel. As lithium ion prices rose in 2022, amid predictions of material shortages, sodium ion was tipped as a rival and interest remains strong, even as lithium ion prices have started to fall again.
“We are currently tracking 335.4 GWh of sodium ion cell production capacity out to 2030, highlighting that there is still considerable commitment to the technology,” said Evan Hartley, senior analyst at Benchmark Mineral Intelligence.
In May 2023, the London-based consultant had tracked 150 GWh to 2030.
Cheaper
Sodium ion cells, produced at scale, could be 20% to 30% cheaper than lithium ferro/iron-phosphate (LFP), the dominant stationary storage battery technology, primarily thanks to abundant sodium and low extraction and purification costs. Sodium ion batteries can use aluminum for the anode current collector instead of copper – used in lithium ion – further reducing costs and supply chain risks. Those savings are still potential, however.
“Before sodium ion batteries can challenge existing lead acid and lithium iron phosphate batteries, industry players will need to reduce the technology’s cost by improving technical performance, establishing supply chains, and achieving economies of scale,” said Shazan Siddiqi, senior technology analyst at United Kingdom-based market research company IDTechEx. “Na-ion’s cost advantage is only achievable when the scale of production reaches a manufacturing scale comparable to lithium ion battery cells. Also, a further price drop of lithium carbonate could reduce the price advantage sodium offers.”
Sodium ion is unlikely to supplant lithium ion in applications prioritizing high performance, and will instead be used for stationary storage and micro electric vehicles. S&P Global analysts expect lithium ion to supply 80% of the battery market by 2030, with 90% of those devices based on LFP. Sodium ion could make up 10% of the market.
Right choices
Researchers have considered sodium ion since the mid-20th century and recent developments include improvements in storage capacity and device life cyle, as well as new anode and cathode materials. Sodium ions are bulkier than lithium counterparts, so sodium ion cells have lower voltage as well as lower gravimetric and volumetric energy density.
Sodium ion gravimetric energy density is currently around 130 Wh/kg to 160 Wh/kg, but is expected to top 200 Wh/kg in future, above the theoretical limit for LFP devices. In power density terms, however, sodium ion batteries could have 1 kW/kg, higher than nickel-manganese-cobalt’s (NMC) 340W/kg to 420 W/kg and LFP’s 175 W/kg to 425 W/kg.
While a sodium ion device life of 100 to 1,000 cycles is lower than LFP, Indian developer KPIT has reported a lifespan with 80% capacity retention for 6,000 cycles – dependent on cell chemistry – comparable to lithium ion devices.
“There is still no single winning chemistry within sodium ion batteries,” said IDTechEx’s Siddiqi. “Lots of R&D efforts are being undertaken to find the perfect anode/cathode active material that allows scalability beyond the lab stage.”
Referring to United States-based safety science oganization Underwriter Laboratories, Siddiqi added that “UL standardization for sodium ion cells is, therefore, still a while away and this makes OEMs [original equipment manufacturers] hesitant to commit to such a technology.”
Prussian white, polyanion, and layered oxide are cathode candidates featuring cheaper materials than lithium ion counterparts. The former, used by Northvolt and CATL, is widely available and cheap but has relatively low volumetric energy density. United Kingdom-based company Faradion uses layered oxide, which promises higher energy density but is plagued by capacity fade over time. France’s Tiamat uses polyanion, which is more stable but features toxic vanadium.
“The majority of cell producers planning sodium ion battery capacity will be using layered oxide cathode technology,” said Benchmark’s Hartly. “In fact, 71% of the [cell] pipeline is layered oxide. Similarly, 90.8% of the sodium ion cathode pipeline is layered oxide.”
Whereas cathodes are the key cost driver for lithium ion, the anode is the most expensive component in sodium ion batteries. Hard carbon is the standard choice for sodium ion anodes but production capacity lags behind that of sodium ion cells, ramping up prices. Hard carbon materials have recently been derived from diverse precursors such as animal waste, sewage sludge, glucose, cellulose, wood, coal and petroleum derivatives. Synthetic graphite, a common lithium ion anode material, relies almost exclusively on the latter two precursors. With its developing supply chain, hard carbon is more costly than graphite and represents one of the key hurdles in sodium ion cell production.
Partially mitigating higher costs, sodium ion batteries exhibit better temperature tolerance, particularly in sub zero conditions. They are safer than lithium ion, as they can be discharged to zero volts, reducing risk during transportation and disposal. Lithium ion batteries are typically stored at around 30% charge. Sodium ion has less fire risk, as its electrolytes have a higher flashpoint – the minimum temperature at which a chemical can vaporize to form an ignitable mixture with air. With both chemistries featuring similar structure and working principles, sodium ion can often be dropped in to lithium ion production lines and equipment.
In fact, the world’s leading battery maker CATL is integrating sodium ion into its lithium ion infrastructure and products. Its first sodium ion battery, released in 2021, had an energy density of 160 Wh/kg, with a promised 200 Wh/kg in the future. In 2023, CATL said Chinese automaker Chery would be the first to use its sodium ion batteries. CATL told pv magazine late in 2023 that it has developed a basic industry chain for sodium ion batteries and established mass production. Production scale and shipments will depend on customer project implementation, said CATL, adding that more needs to be done for the large scale commercial rollout of sodium ion. “We hope that the whole industry will work together to promote the development of sodium ion batteries,” said the battery maker.
Charge to sodium
In January 2024, China’s biggest carmaker and second-biggest battery supplier, BYD, said it had started construction of a CNY 10 billion ($1.4 billion), 30 GWh per year sodium ion battery factory. The output will power “micromobility” devices. HiNa, spun out of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, in December 2022 had commissioned a gigawatt-hour-scale sodium ion battery production line and announced a Na-ion battery product range and electric car prototype.
European battery maker Northvolt unveiled 160 Wh/kg-validated sodium ion battery cells in November 2023. Developed with Altris – spun out of Uppsala University, in Sweden – the technology will be used in the company’s next-generation energy storage device. Northvolt’s current offering is based on NMC chemistry. At the launch, Wilhelm Löwenhielm, Northvolt senior director of business development for energy storage systems, said the company wants a battery that is competitive with LFP at scale. “Over time, the technology is expected to surpass LFP significantly in terms of cost-competitiveness,” he said.
Northvolt wants a “plug-and-play” battery for fast market entry and scale-up. “Key activities for bringing this particular technology to market are scaling the supply chain for battery-grade materials, which Northvolt is currently doing, together with partners,” said Löwenhielm.
Smaller players are also doing their bit to bring sodium ion technology to commercialization. Faradion, which was acquired by Indian conglomerate Reliance Industries in 2021, says it is now transferring its next-generation cell design to production. “We have developed a new cell technology and footprint with 20% higher energy density, and increased cycle-life by a third compared to our previous cell design,” said Faradion Chief Executive Officer (CEO) James Quinn. The company’s first-generation cells demonstrated an energy density of 160 Wh/kg. In 2022, Quinn said that Reliance’s plan was to build a double-digit-gigawatt sodium ion factory in India. For now, it seems that those plans are still in place. In August 2023, Reliance Chairman Mukesh Ambani told the company’s annual shareholder meeting that the business is “focused on fast-track commercialization of our sodium ion battery technology … We will build on our technology leadership by industrializing sodium ion cell production at a megawatt level by 2025 and rapidly build up to gigascale thereafter,” he said.
Production
Startup Tiamat has moved forward on its plans to start construction of a 5 GWh production plant in France’s Hauts-de-France region. In January 2024, it raised €30 million ($32.4 million) in equity and debt financing and said that it expects to complete the financing of its industrial project in the coming months, bringing the total financing to around €150 million. The company, a spinoff from the French National Centre for Scientific Research, will initially manufacture sodium ion cells for power tools and stationary storage applications in its factory, “to fulfill the first orders that have already been received.” It will later target scaled-up production of second-generation products for battery electric vehicle applications.
In the United States, industry players are also ramping up their commercialization efforts. In January 2024, Acculon Energy announced series production of its sodium ion battery modules and packs for mobility and stationary energy storage applications and unveiled plans to scale its production to 2 GWh by mid-2024. Meanwhile, Natron Energy, a spinoff out of Stanford University, intended to start mass-producing its sodium ion batteries in 2023. Its goal was to make 600 MW of sodium ion cells at battery producer Clarios International’s exiting lithium ion Meadowbrook facility, in Michigan. Updates on progress have been limited, however.
Funding
In October 2023, Peak Energy emerged with $10 million in funding and a management team comprising ex-Northvolt, Enovix, Tesla, and SunPower executives. The company said it will initially import battery cells and that was not expected to change until early 2028. “You need around a billion dollars for a small scale gigawatt factory – think less than 10 GW,” Peak Energy CEO Landon Mossburg said at the launch. “So the fastest way to get to market is to build a system with cells available from a third party, and China is the only place building capacity to ship enough cells.” Eventually, the company hopes to qualify for domestic content credits under the United States Inflation Reduction Act.
Some suppliers, such as India’s KPIT, have entered the space without any production plans. The automotive software and engineering solutions business unveiled its sodium ion battery technology in December 2023 and embarked on a search for manufacturing partners. Ravi Pandit, chairman of KPIT, said that the company has developed multiple variants with energy density ranging from 100 Wh/kg to 170 Wh/kg, and potentially reaching 220 Wh/kg. “When we started work on sodium ion batteries, the initial expectation of energy density was quite low,” he said. “But over the last eight years the energy density has been going up because of the developments that we and other companies have been carrying out.” Others are on the lookout for supply partnerships. Last year, Finnish technology group Wärtsilä – one of the world’s leading battery energy storage system integrators – said that it was seeking potential partnerships or acquisitions in the field. At the time, it was moving toward testing the technology in its research facilities. “Our team remains committed to pursuing new opportunities in terms of diversifying energy storage technologies, such as incorporating sodium ion batteries into our future stationary energy storage solutions,” said Amy Liu, director of strategic solutions development at Wärtsilä Energy Storage and Optimization, in February 2024.
Nearshoring opportunity
Following many mass-production announcements, sodium ion batteries are now at the make-or-break point and investor interest will determine the technology’s fate. IDTechEx’s market analysis, carried out in November 2023, suggests anticipated growth of at least 40 GWh by 2030, with an additional 100 GWh of manufacturing capacity hinging on the market’s success by 2025.
“These projections assume an impending boom in the [sodium ion battery] industry, which is dependent upon commercial commitment within the next few years,” said Siddiqi.
Sodium ion could offer yet another opportunity to near-shore clean energy supply chains, with the required raw materials so readily available across the globe. It appears that train has already left the station, however. “As with the early stages of the lithium ion battery market, the main bottleneck for the global industry will be the dominance of China,” said Benchmark’s Hartley. “As of 2023, 99.4% of sodium ion cell capacity was based in China and this figure is only forecast to fall to 90.6% by 2030. As policy in Europe and North America seeks to shift lithium ion battery supply chains away from China, due to the reliance on its domestic production, so too will a shift be needed in the sodium ion market to create localized supply chains.”
Marija Maisch
Marija has years of experience in a news agency environment and writing for print and online publications. She took over as the editor of pv magazine Australia in 2018 and helped establish its online presence over a two-year period. More articles from Marija Maisch
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