Saft, a subsidiary of energy company Total, is expected to begin mass production of next-generation lithium-ion batteries in early 2020. Saft is a member of the European Quartet Battery Alliance, including Siemens AG in Germany, Manz in Germany and Solvay in Belgium. The four companies started to cooperate in February this year to develop high-density liquid electrolyte lithium-ion batteries and solid-state batteries to compete with Asian battery manufacturers.
Safford Operations Director Jean-Baptiste Pernot said: "Our goal is to develop the performance level of the battery far exceeds the current level, and we are considering increasing the energy density of the battery by 50%."
Pernot said that the alliance's goal is to start mass production of the third generation of liquid electrolyte lithium-ion batteries in the first half of 2020. By 2020, the goal is to launch the 3B generation of liquid electrolyte lithium-ion batteries before the introduction of solid-state lithium-ion batteries in 2024.
Pernot dismissed industry analysts 'concerns about the alliance and said the four companies' agreement is proceeding as planned and confirms Saft's plan to invest 200 million to 300 million euros (about 232 million to 347 million US dollars) for research and development . Pernot said that the fourth-generation battery will bring benefits in safety and design, and will have an impact on costs, especially for the cost of electric vehicles. Currently, most electric vehicles use liquid electrolyte lithium-ion batteries.
Currently, the battery market is dominated by Asian battery manufacturers including BYD in China, Ningde Times (CATL), and Samsung SDI and LG Chem in South Korea. Such Asian companies also hope to produce batteries in Europe. Northvolt, a Swedish company led by former Tesla executives, plans to build the largest lithium-ion battery plant in Europe and achieve an annual plant capacity of 32 gigawatt hours (GWh) by 2023.
Pernot said: "By 2025, the European battery market will reach 150 gigawatt hours to 200 gigawatt hours, and may double by 2030. At present, the world's largest battery factory has a capacity of 20 gigawatt hours. It means there is still a lot of space. "