At the end of March, China published its new EV battery safety standard GB38031-2025, replacing the previously applicable version GB38031-2020. Mandatory implementation for new vehicles begins on 1 July 2026, while existing vehicles must provide proof of compliance by 1 July 2027. This results in a 12-month transition period to... Read more →

A team led by researchers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) has shown that vapor from lithium oxide (Li2O) sublimation accelerates a chemical reaction that forms single crystals when mixed with nickel-rich precursors. The sublimation happens at just one atmosphere of pressure. Single-crystal battery materials are thought to help batteries... Read more →

Kandi Technologies Group and CBAK Energy Technology—both based in China—announced a strategic partnership to establish two lithium battery production facilities in the US, with locations under evaluation. The first facility, focused on battery pack assembly, is slated for near-term development. The second facility, dedicated to battery cell manufacturing, represents a... Read more →

Daimler Buses is planning further growth in the field of e-mobility—also beyond vehicles and infrastructure. To this end, the company is introducing new services to extend the useful life of electrically powered buses: For example, Daimler Buses is now offering its customers the remanufacturing of electric bus batteries. In addition,... Read more →

Freudenberg offers an optimized sealing material for e-mobility applications as an alternative to PFAS-containing thermoplastic and FKM seals. This new material series is processed by injection molding, delivers superior sealing performance, ensures battery life and meets increasingly stringent environmental regulations. In the rapidly growing electric vehicle market, improved battery performance... Read more →

Toshiba Corporation has launched a new SCiB module, a lithium-ion battery designed for use in EV buses, electric ships, and stationary applications. The new product features an aluminum baseplate that dissipates approximately twice the heat of current modules. It will be available from mid-April 2025, in Japan and internationally. Use... Read more →

Barrell Energy launched a Series A funding round for its portfolio company, Barrell Lithium LLC. The capital raised will fuel significant expansion of the company’s strategic acreage position within the highly prospective Smackover lithium brine play in East Texas. This initiative follows a successful seed funding round for Barrell Lithium... Read more →

CNGR Advanced Material Ltd has decided to withdraw from the planned precursor cathode active material (pCAM) plant project in Hamina, Finland. (Earlier post.) As a result, Finnish Minerals Group has acquired the entire share capital of CNGR Finland. Finnish Minerals Group previously held a 40% minority stake in the company.... Read more →

Ecobat announced the successful commissioning of three lithium-ion battery recycling facilities within just one year. Located in Hettstedt, Germany; Casa Grande, Arizona; and Darlaston, England, these facilities are now fully operational, contributing to the global transition to a circular battery economy. Together, the three plants are capable of processing up... Read more →

Sionic Energy, a developer of high-energy-density, fast-charging silicon anode technology, has been awarded a $200,000 SuperBoost grant from the NSF Engines: Upstate New York Energy Storage Engine. The funding will accelerate the development and commercialization of Sionic’s 100% silicon lithium-ion battery platform, which delivers energy density, ultra-fast charging, and seamless... Read more →

Researchers at the University of Michigan have developed a modified manufacturing process for EV batteries that enables high ranges and fast charging in cold weather. A paper on their work is published in the journal Joule. We envision this approach as something that EV battery manufacturers could adopt without major... Read more →

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... Read more →

Renesas Electronics Corporation has introduced all-in-one solutions for managing lithium-ion battery packs in a wide range of battery-powered consumer products, such as e-bikes, vacuum cleaners, robotics and drones. With pre-validated firmware provided, the R-BMS F (Ready Battery Management System with Fixed Firmware) will significantly reduce the learning curve for developers,... Read more →

Porsche is piloting a project to recover valuable raw materials from high-voltage batteries after their use in vehicles and to test a potential closed-loop raw material cycle. With this initiative, Porsche wants to addresses the growing importance of recycled battery raw materials and promote responsible handling of high-voltage batteries. In... Read more →

Umicore has entered into two separate agreements for the supply of precursor cathode active materials (pCAM) for electric vehicle batteries with CNGR and Eco&Dream Co., Ltd. (E&D). The pCAM, a critical component of EV batteries, will cater to Umicore’s customer contracts in North America and Asia. The two mid-to-long-term contracts... Read more →

Finnish Minerals Group and Beijing Easpring Material Technology have decided to start the construction of the CAM plant. The plant to be constructed in Kotka, Finland will produce cathode active material (CAM). The plant’s first-stage capacity will be 60,000 tonnes of cathode active material per year. The plans also include... Read more →

Researchers from Wenzhou University, with colleagues from other universities in China and Argonne National Laboratory in the US, have engineered niobium tungsten oxide (NbWO) to accelerate the charging process in a Li-ion battery significantly. In an open-access paper in Nature Communications, the team reports that engineered NbWO (rGO/NbWO) exhibits a... Read more →

Eaton announced that its innovative 3-in-1 battery vent valve is the first on the market to align with the new SAE J3277 standard designed to evaluate non-destructive water intrusion testing for Rechargeable Energy Storage Systems (RESS) used in electrified vehicles (EVs). Eaton’s 3-in-1 battery vent valve combines three critical functions—passive... Read more →

SK On and Nissan announced a battery supply agreement that will support Nissan’s electric vehicle (EV) production in North America. Under the agreement, SK On will supply nearly 100GWh of high-performance, high-nickel batteries to Nissan from 2028 to 2033. These US-manufactured batteries will power Nissan’s next-generation EVs to be produced... Read more →

The University of Michigan will move forward with plans to construct a new electric vehicle battery laboratory, broadening research and hands-on education in next-generation battery technologies on the Ann Arbor campus. The Board of Regents approved the $60 million project at its meeting in February. Funding will be provided from... Read more →

Thailand’s Commission on the National Competitiveness Enhancement for Targeted Industries, at a meeting today, approved an investment by a unit of China’s Sunwoda Electronic worth more than a billion dollars in the production of electric vehicle (EV) and energy storage system (ESS) batteries at the cell level, in a move... Read more →

Pure Lithium Corporation, a vertically integrated lithium metal battery technology company, has received funding from the Vehicle Technology Office to scale production of lithium metal anodes from recycled lithium metal, in partnership with Argonne National Laboratory. Lithium metal waste is produced by certain industrial processes in the United States. Recovering... Read more →

The USGS released projections for world production capacity for seven critical minerals and helium for the next five years in the first World Minerals Outlook, a forward-looking assessment that is part of a larger effort to provide forecasts and scenarios for global mineral supply chains. The world’s capacity to produce... Read more →

C-BATT presented its US-sourced Obsidia high-capacity battery anode material (earlier post) at the NAATBatt 2025 Annual Conference in Orlando, where the focus was on the urgent need for energy dominance in United States. C-BATT’s fully domestic production model ensures that every stage of the Obsidia lifecycle—from raw material sourcing to... Read more →

LANXESS is offering a new solution for the rapidly growing battery industry. The Lewatit MK 51 ion exchange resin from LANXESS selectively removes boron from metal concentrates, thus enabling the extraction of high-purity raw materials for use in batteries. In contrast to solvent extraction, ion exchange technology does not employ... Read more →

Amprius Technologies has shipped its new 6.3Ah 21700 SiCore cell to a Fortune 500 company in the Light Electric Vehicle (LEV) sector for evaluation. The new cell sets a new standard in the industry for energy density in this widely used format. With an energy density of 315 Wh/kg, the... Read more →

Rio Tinto has completed its acquisition of Arcadium Lithium plc for $6.7 billion, following the sanctioning of the Scheme of Arrangement by the Royal Court of Jersey on 5 March. Rio Tinto is now the ultimate parent company of Arcadium Lithium, which will become Rio Tinto Lithium, and will also... Read more →

The Government of Canada and the Province of Ontario have signed letters of intent (LOIs) to support Frontier Lithium’s planned Lithium Conversion Facility in Thunder Bay, Ontario. The LOIs are non-binding and serve as an initial step in ongoing discussions with the respective government agencies. The LOIs express an interest... Read more →

A new Lithium Manganese Iron Phosphate (LMFP) cathode active material developed by Integrals Power could increase the real-world range of electric vehicles (EVs) by extending the useable capacity of the battery under high discharge conditions. Conventional Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) chemistries experience a reduction in useable capacity when the battery... Read more →

24M Technologies expanded its portfolio of Eternalyte electrolytes that significantly improve charge rate and cold temperature performance of today’s batteries. Initially unveiled in February 2024 and designed for lithium-metal batteries, the new enhanced offering is ideal for silicon- and graphite-based batteries used in applications that require high power and low... Read more →

Porsche AG has acquired V4Drive GmbH from the VARTA AG-Group. Porsche is the new majority shareholder of the company, while VARTA AG will retain a minority stake without any operational influence. Porsche and VARTA AG are combining their expertise in the development and production of high-performance cylindrical cells. V4Drive is... Read more →

Researchers at the University of Leicester have developed an innovative way of recovering valuable battery-grade metal oxides from crushed batteries by using nanoemulsions created from a trace of cooking oil in water. An open-access paper on their work is published in the journal RSC Sustainability. Research has shown that using... Read more →

Talga Group Ltd has signed a non-binding MOU with Altilium to secure a sustainable supply of graphite for use in EV battery anode products. Under the MoU framework, Altilium proposes to supply Talga with up to 16,000 tonnes of recycled graphite over three years commencing 2026. Talga is building Europe’s... Read more →

Volklec, A UK-based battery manufacturing business, reached an exclusive license agreement has been reached with China-based Far East Battery (FEB). FEB designs and manufactures batteries, providing energy storage solutions and EV power globally since 2009. Under the technology and knowledge transfer agreement, Volklec will manufacture advanced lithium-ion batteries in the... Read more →

Amprius Technologies, a developer of next-generation lithium-ion batteries with its Silicon Anode Platform, secured a $15-million purchase order from a leading Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) manufacturer to produce its SiCore cells for UAS applications. The volume purchase order follows successful field trials and qualification, leading to Amprius’ battery being designed... Read more →

Mercedes-Benz engineers from the road and racetrack worked in collaboration with Factorial cell engineers to deliver an all-new solid-state battery test program, resulting in the first car powered by a lithium-metal solid-state battery on the road. Mercedes AMG High Performance Powertrains (HPP), a wholly owned subsidiary of Mercedes-Benz Group specializing... Read more →

Hyundai Motor Company and Kia Corporation will partner with Samsung SDI to develop high-performance batteries specifically for robots, with the aim of increasing energy density, output and usage time significantly. The three companies signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for this joint development at Hyundai Motor Group’s Uiwang Research Center.... Read more →

SK On will showcase its expanded battery portfolio at InterBattery 2025, highlighting its ability to meet diverse market needs. SK On, part of South Korea’s SK Group, will showcase three types of battery form factors—pouch, prismatic and cylindrical—to emphasize its technological prowess and ability to meet diverse customer demands. This... Read more →

Researchers from Sichuan University have encapsulated bismuth particles in plate-like carbon shells to enhance structural stability and improve ion transport rates, ultimately achieving a high-performance sodium storage anode with nearly no capacity decay during charge-discharge cycles. A paper on their work is published in the Journal of Power Sources. Li... Read more →

At its Tech Days event in Landshut, BMW provided some initial insights into the development and production of high-voltage batteries and electric drive systems using the sixth generation of BMW eDrive technology. Every fully electric Neue Klasse vehicle will enjoy the benefits. The first Neue Klasse model will go into... Read more →

A new study carried out by Imperial College London has found that Altilium’s recycled EV battery materials can match, and even surpass, the performance of virgin mined materials. Imperial’s analysis of Altilium’s recycled cathode active materials (CAM) confirmed distinct improvements in purity, morphology and electrochemical performance, compared to commercially available... Read more →

A joint computational and experimental study has examined how adding certain dopants to a solid electrolyte could improve its interaction with a lithium metal electrode. The result could be safer, more energy-efficient batteries. In a paper published in ACS Materials Letters, a team led by researchers at the US Department... Read more →

Lyten announced further progress in building its US supply chain to meet rapidly growing demand for its Lithium-Sulfur batteries. Lyten has signed agreements with California Sulphur Company, at the Port of Los Angeles, and a Port of Stockton company to supply domestically-sourced, industrial-grade sulfur to Lyten’s manufacturing facilities in San... Read more →

Australia’s national science agency, CSIRO, has launched a new research and development (R&D) grant opportunity to accelerate the growth of the domestic battery industry and open up export opportunities, especially in the United States of America. Under the grant opportunity, successful mining and manufacturing small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs) will be offered... Read more →

Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation (MFTBC) will conduct a demonstration of its Battery 2nd Life initiative starting from February 2025. Under this initiative, the company plans to repurpose used batteries from the its electric light-duty eCanter trucks to build energy storage systems. MFTBC will jointly conduct the demonstration with... Read more →

Elevated Materials, a newly formed independent company, has launched with investments from TPG’s Rise Climate fund and Applied Materials, Inc. Building on extensive technology development from Applied, Elevated Materials brings to market ultra-thin, uniform lithium films designed to enable the next generation of batteries with enhanced energy density, cycle life,... Read more →

Toyota Battery Manufacturing North Carolina (TBMNC), Toyota’s first in-house battery manufacturing plant outside Japan, is ready to begin production and will start shipping batteries for North American electrified vehicles in April. The nearly $14-billion battery facility, Toyota’s 11th manufacturing plant in the United States, will produce batteries for hybrid electric... Read more →

Toyota Motor Corporation will sign a comprehensive partnership agreement with the Shanghai municipal government in China regarding carbon neutrality. In addition, Toyota has decided to establish a new wholly-owned company in Jinshan District in southwest Shanghai to develop and produce BEVs and batteries. Under this partnership with the Shanghai municipal... Read more →

Li-Cycle Holdings, a global lithium-ion battery resource recovery company, has partnered with an additional premium automotive original equipment manufacturer (“OEM”) to recycle lithium-ion battery materials at its Germany Spoke as it continues to broaden its commercial footprint in the EU. This exclusive agreement channels feedstock from a facility producing electric... Read more →

Researchers at The George Washington University, University of Chicago and The University of Texas at Austin have developed a new method directly to extract and to purify lithium hydroxide from geothermal brines. An open-access paper on their work is published in Nature Communications. In this work, we design an economically... Read more →