Euro Manganese Inc V.EMN

RE:vw gigafactory in czechia

[oceaneleven]

Schmall mentioned that they can slash them by up to 50%. If that is correct, electric cars may soon go beyond production cost parity with ICE vehicles: they may become cheaper to produce, depending on the chemistry. That is why Volkswagen is working with four of them starting in 2023.

For entry-level vehicles, Volkswagen will adopt LFP (lithium iron phosphate) cells. They are already in use by Tesla in the Model 3 made in China and by Wuling in the Hongguang Mini EV. Apart from cost, these cells are also safer, with much lower risks of thermal runaway episodes.

For high-volume cars, unified cells will have high manganese cells, something battery specialists were not very convinced about. So far, they have presented a low cycle life and relatively low energy density. It seems Volkswagen managed to overcome those issues with its suppliers, such as Gotian. According to Frank Blome – Volkswagen Group Component's head of battery cell and system – manganese is much cheaper than nickel, which offers higher energy density.