Supplier to many electric car manufacturers, including Tesla and PSA, Chinese giant Contemporary Amperex Technology Co Ltd (CATL) is working on a new type of battery that does not contain nickel or cobalt.
Faced with the expectations of manufacturers, suppliers are hard at work to improve their technologies. While Toyota is working on a new solid battery with a lithium-free sulfide chemistry, the Chinese CATL is studying the development of a battery containing neither cobalt nor nickel, two key ingredients of current batteries.
Announced at an industry conference organized by the Chinese Association of Automobile Manufacturers in Shanghai, this new chemistry would be very different from the NCA, NCM and LFP technologies currently in use. For CATL, the challenge is twofold since it is a question of dispensing with costly resources whose availability remains geographically limited.
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Batteries integrated into the chassis
Beyond this new chemistry, CATL is also working on a new process for integrating cells. Called CTP (cell-to-pack), this consists of placing the cells directly in the vehicle chassis. One way to replace the classic modules and to save space and weight to offer more autonomy.
Already used by CATL and BYD, this new design requires manufacturers to re-imagine the construction of the chassis. Another constraint: a more delicate repair procedure in the event of defective cells.
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