Samsung SDI recently unveiled its latest EV battery technology featuring advanced solid-state batteries (SSBs) that promises to redefine battery performance and practicality in electric car applications. The battery packs have already reached vehicle OEMs for evaluation, the company has said.
The company's oxide solid-state battery technology boasts an impressive energy density of 500 Wh/kg, about twice the 270 Wh/kg density of the mainstream battery packs available for automotive application at present. Improved energy density of the battery could potentially push up the vehicle's driving range.
More importantly, the battery tech affirms an average driving range of 600 miles (almost 1,000 kms), with rapid charging in just 9 minutes, and support a lifespan of 20 years. Samsung also claims that these battery packs are likely to be smaller, lighter, and safer than the lithium-ion batteries available on the market for EV use at present.
At the recently held SNE Battery Day 2024 expo in Seoul, South Korea, the company announced that its pilot solid-state battery production plant is now fully operational. Mass production of these batteries is expected to commence from 2027 onwards.
The battery maker's latest technology is in sync with the global industry's trajectory towards battery cells with higher energy density and longer lifespan, often dubbed as the 'million-mile' battery for electric vehicles.
Offical numbers are still currently unavailable but estimates could be for as much as 5 grams of silver per cell in Samsung's solid-state batteries, a typical EV battery pack containing around 200 cells for a 100 kWh capacity could require about 1 kg of silver per vehicle. With global car production standing at about 80 million vehicles per year, if 20% of these vehicles (16 million EVs) were to adopt Samsung's solid-state batteries, the annual demand for silver would be around 16,000 metric tons (16 million vehicles * 1 kg of silver per vehicle). This would represent a significant portion of the current global silver production, which is approximately 25,000 metric tons annually, highlighting the substantial impact on the silver market.
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