China Catl launched Naxtra on Monday, its new sodium-ion battery brand for mass production in December, as well as a second generation fast charge EV battery promising a 520 km range with a five-minute load.
CATL has become the first large manufacturer of automobile batteries to launch a sodium-ion battery in 2021. Unlike other battery materials, sodium is inexpensive and abundant, and chemistry has the potential to reduce fire risk in electric vehicles, experts said.
The first production under the Naxtra brand will be a new sodium-ion battery with an energy density of 175 watthers per kilogram, almost equivalent to the lithium iron phosphate batteries (LFP) popularly used in electric vehicles and energy storage systems of the network.
Sodium-ion batteries can have an advantage of costs on lithium-ion batteries as technology and the supply chain develop, said Ouyang Chuying, co-president of R&D at Catl.
The founder of the Catl billionaire, Robin Zeng, said that he saw the sodium-ion batteries potentially replacing up to half the LFP batteries that are now dominating.
In addition to Naxtra, CATL also launched the second generation of its quick charging battery Shenxing, which, according to her, can allow a range of 520 km with a load of five minutes, and reach 80% of 0% in 15 minutes in cold weather.
More than 67 new models of electric vehicles will be fueled by the Shenxing battery this year, said CATL technology director Gao Huan during an event in Shanghai, without specifying how much would be equipped with the first or second generation.
More than 18.32 million cars equipped with CATL batteries take place in more than 66 countries worldwide, according to Gao.
CATL has also launched a new system to associate battery packs together, similar to the two -motors on passenger jets, which, according to the company, would improve the safety of electric vehicles.
Last month, CATL declared a growth of 15% in 2024 net profit, the slowest rate in six years, such as a prolonged price on the Chinese electric vehicle market exerted pressure on the Chinese Battery Giant EV.
