Solid-state batteries are seen as a hopeful factor for the final breakthrough in electromobility because they promise far greater ranges than current batteries with liquid electrolytes. Car manufacturers repeatedly report successes in development and announce targets for series production – but the reality is less rosy.
The theoretically superior technology is still a long way from being used in practice in cars. After delays with its development partner QuantumScape, Volkswagen is putting out feelers for further collaborations, as a person familiar with the matter told the Reuters news agency. The German group is in talks with the French company Blue Solutions, which already produces solid-state batteries for e-buses from Daimler Truck produced. A development agreement for passenger cars is planned. VW did not comment on possible discussions with Blue Solutions. With QuantumScape, the company is on track with its project.Full of problems: The holy grail of battery researchThe much-praised super batteries are an important building block for the electric drive of tomorrow and, according to some experts, the holy grail of battery research. They are considered safer in terms of fire protection and enable greater ranges with shorter charging times than conventional lithium-ion batteries. But Volkswagen’s search for new collaborations points to a number of technical hurdles that lie ahead of the manufacturers on the way to series production. According to a spokesman, Blue Solutions, which belongs to the French conglomerate Bollore, is working on a car battery. It has concluded development agreements with BMW and another company. Blue Solutions is in discussions with a third company. A Gigafactory is expected to be built by 2029.Please wait…The automotive industry has high hopes for the promising solid-state batteries. For example, through its cooperation with QuantumScape, Volkswagen expects an e-Golf with a range of 750 kilometers by 2025. But despite decades of research and billions of dollars in investments, developing the new battery remains a complicated undertaking. The investment bank Goldman Sachs does not expect commercial production of QuantumScape batteries until the second half of the decade. Investor interest in the technology has therefore waned, says Jeff Peters from Ibex Investors. According to data from PitchBook, global venture capital investment in research-based companies fell to $146 million (134 million euros) in 2023, after rising to more than half a billion dollars in the previous five years. “Many promises were not kept, and several car manufacturers and investors got their fingers burned,” says Rory McNulty from the consulting firm Benchmark Mineral Intelligence. There is a lot of well-documented data and technology, but it remains unclear whether the industry can implement this reliably and on a large scale. Charging time is difficult to shorten. In addition to the service life, one sticking point is, among other things, the charging time, which is the case with the current batteries from Blue Solutions is four hours. This is less of a problem for trucks or buses that can charge overnight in the depot than for cars that have to be charged on the go. The company is therefore working on a corresponding battery with a charging time of 20 minutes. The use of lithium metal can dramatically increase performance, but triggers reactions that can lead to cracks and a short circuit in the battery. Many players – only one is not participating Toyota announced a technological breakthrough last year that will enable mass production from 2027/28 enable. A top model with a range of 1000 kilometers is planned. The solid-state battery could cover 1,200 kilometers in one go when fully charged, which should only take ten minutes. However, the current schedule is already two years behind the original goal. Other companies such as the Chinese battery giant CATL, the South Korean battery manufacturer LG Energy Solution, the US company Solid Power, ProLogium from China and the Japanese car manufacturers Nissan and Honda also want solid-state batteries introduce.E-car pioneer Tesla remains an outlier in the industry and has not yet revealed any plans for the development of the new battery type. The initial euphoria has now given way to sober realism: “We still have a lot of work to do,” admits QuantumScape boss Jagdeep Singh.
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