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Chinese automakers just unveiled a new solid-state battery that could revolutionize the electric vehicles industry. The technology boasts double the energy density of battery models currently available on the market, and could power an EV for an astonishing 800 miles without needing to be recharged. The innovation is just the latest piece of evidence pointing to China’s near-total dominance – in terms of both technology and manufacturing – of the global EV sector. Solid-state batteries have been receiving increasing attention in recent years for their potential to improve EV range, increase safety, and reshape global supply chains for batteries and the materials that go into them. Lithium batteries, which currently dominate the market, are currently powered by lithium ions flowing through a liquid electrolyte. Solid-state batteries, by contrast, use a solid electrolyte which eliminates the need for a bulky separator component separating positive and negative electrodes. “Plain and simple, solid electrolytes provide a safer and more stable environment for lithium ions to move through, enabling faster charging,” reports Popular Mechanics. The result is a lighter, faster-charging model that does not include the flammable liquid that makes lithium-ion batteries a fire hazard. Reports on the new solid-state battery model introduced by Chery Automobile show the prototype “running flawlessly through a nail penetration test, also shaking off damage from a power drill without catching fire or producing any mystery smoke,” the Popular Mechanics report goes on to say. The competition to corner the market on solid-state EV batteries is fierce. Toyota currently leads the charge on patents, with 1,700 filed for solid-state battery technologies. But smaller start-ups like China’s Chery have certain advantages, as they are able to iterate, pivot, and test prototypes faster than automaking behemoths like Toyota. Indeed, the speed and disruptiveness of innovation coming out of China is astounding. For years, China was thought of as a technological copy-cat, but all that is changing as the nation becomes the world’s premiere clean energy innovator. “Over two decades China has leapt ahead of other countries, churning out innovative designs for the energy mix of the future: solar and wind power, batteries and electric cars,” reports the New York Times. In the year 2000, a mere 18 competitive clean energy patents were filed by Chinese applicants. By 2022, that number exceeded 5,000. According to figures from the Information Technology & Innovation Foundation (ITIF), Chinese institutions now account for 65.4 percent of the world’s high-impact research publications in electric batteries. In comparison, United States institutions currently contribute 11.9 percent. Not only is China taking the lead on EV innovations, they also have a dominating lead on EV manufacturing, exports, and related supply chains. Today, China produces nearly two-thirds of the world’s EVs and over three-quarters of EV batteries. From 2020 to 2023 alone, China’s global EV exports increased by a whopping 851 percent. “The Chinese government—at both the federal and provincial levels—has made EV competitiveness a national priority,” reports ITIF. “But while China’s EV industry has certainly benefitted from intense government support, Chinese EV and EV battery enterprises have become increasingly innovative in their own right across a number of dimensions of product innovation, process innovation, business model innovation, and even customer experience innovation.” Chery’s astounding solid-state battery achievement is indicative of this trend, but it is only a stepping-stone toward ever higher-performing EV batteries and greater Chinese dominance. Chinese companies are already reportedly working on making EV batteries with a 2,000 kilometer (km) (1,300 mile) range. For the most part, global automakers can’t afford to lose time and money trying to achieve the same sorts of gains that China is already achieving. A Reuters report on how Chinese EV tech is reshaping global auto design notes, “global automakers need Chinese technology to leapfrog development hurdles and launch new EVs quickly.” By Haley Zaremba for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com India Eyes Long-Term U.S. LPG Supply Putin: Oil Prices Could Soar Past $100 Without Russian Crude Europe’s Steel Market Faces Turmoil as EU Moves to Double Tariffs
