Sion Power, a developer and manufacturer of lithium-metal battery technology, has taken a significant step toward commercializing its Licerion battery technology with the installation of a new large-format battery cell production line, developed in partnership with Mühlbauer Group. These cells are critical demonstration tools, showcasing the scalability of Sion Power’s proprietary lithium-metal anode technology for EV manufacturers.

Sion Power’s proprietary, patented Licerion technology addresses significant barriers to mass EV adoption—range, cost, and charge time. Unlocking the potential of lithium metal, Licerion doubles energy density, surpassing graphite and silicon anode solutions, and is expected to reduce the cost of a 200 kWh pack by 35% through a 15% cut in cell material costs and a 20% reduction in cell count. It also enables charge times comparable to a gas station’s 8-minute average refuel time.

Compared to traditional lithium-ion batteries, Licerion batteries offer twice the energy in the same size and weight. With more than 400 Wh/kg, Licerion batteries are produced at scale in large-format cells and will enhance commercial and consumer electric vehicles’ performance significantly.

The state-of-the-art production line will produce large-format battery cells exceeding 50 amp-hours. It is a critical milestone in advancing its Licerion technology to meet automotive standards.

The new fully automated manufacturing line will be capable of producing 75MWh of 56 Ah lithium metal cells annually. Until now, Sion Power used an automated assembly line to produce a variety of cell formats, including lab-scale and six-amp-hour cells, while using a semi-automated line for larger-format cells. Adding the new line significantly enhances production efficiency and quality control for larger-format cells, which are essential for validating performance, cycle life and manufacturability at scale.

Sion Power’s new production line is a significant improvement over previous semi-automated processes, increasing throughput and enhancing stacking, sealing, and anode preparation precision.

With this new cell production capability, we will provide large-format test cells with both LFP and NMC cathodes for our US and global customers, including our strategic partners like LGES as well as global battery cell manufacturers and automotive OEMs, at a much higher rate while maintaining the quality standards required for next-generation battery development. This is a significant step in developing lithium metal chemistry and helps ensure we will be volume production-ready in 2028.

—Pam Fletcher, Sion Power CEO