Business Standard

Chinese EV maker showcases world's first car powered by sodium-ion battery

Chinese EV maker JAC has showcased the world's first electric vehicle (EV) that is powered by a cheaper sodium-ion battery which could help reduce the cost of future EVs by 10 per cent

battery

IANS Beijing

Chinese EV maker JAC has showcased the world's first electric vehicle (EV) that is powered by a cheaper sodium-ion battery which could help reduce the cost of future EVs by 10 per cent, the media reported on Friday.

Sodium-ion batteries use cheaper raw materials and can offer EV makers an alternative to existing technologies that rely on lithium and cobalt as the main ingredients.

The sodium-ion battery was developed by Beijing-based startup Hina Battery Technologies, reports South China Morning Post.

The JAC EV is fitted with a 25 kilowatt-hour (kWh) battery that can go as far as 250 kms on a single charge, Hina said in a statement.

 

"A surge in lithium carbonate prices last year made many battery manufacturers and downstream users face ever-rising cost pressures," Hina said.

"Therefore, sodium-ion batteries offering better cost-performance, high safety as well as excellent cycle performance, have been widely expected as the most promising alternative to lithium-ion batteries."

Sodium-ion batteries have lower density than their lithium-ion counterparts. These batteries have advantages such as low-temperature performance and charging speed.

Hina, founded in 2017, engages in the development and commercialisation of sodium-ion batteries.

Meanwhile, Chinese electric carmaker BYD is expanding operations overseas, setting a unit sales target for 2023 to overtake Elon Musk-run Tesla.

Operating in more than 40 nations, BYD plans to sell nearly two million EVs this year, including in Japan and countries in Southeast Asia and Europe, according to a Nikkei Asia report.

In December last year, BYD Auto remained the global market leader, shipping more than 5,37,000 EV units -- an increase of 197 per cent (on-year).

The global electric vehicle (EV) charging revenue is likely to exceed $300 billion by 2027, up from $66 billion in 2023, a report said this week.

According to Juniper Research, the total number of plug-in vehicles will surpass 137 million globally by 2027, up from 49 million in 2023.

--IANS

na/dpb

 

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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First Published: Feb 24 2023 | 5:48 PM IST

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