Gogoro Inc (睿能創意) yesterday unveiled a prototype solid-state swappable battery that it developed with ProLogium Technology Co (輝能科技), saying that it would provide greater range for its electric scooters.
Gogoro said it plans to introduce the higher-density lithium ceramic batteries in the next three to four years.
The development makes Gogoro a global leader in solid-state lithium ceramic batteries, following similar developments by leading automakers such as Toyota Motor Corp, General Motors Co and Mercedes-Benz.
Photo courtesy of Gogoro Inc
Without flammable liquid electrolytes, solid-state lithium ceramic batteries are considered safer than traditional lithium-ion batteries.
“We partnered with ProLogium Technology, a global leader in solid-state battery innovation, to develop this new battery that delivers higher-energy density for better range, improved stability and safety, and is reverse compatible with all existing Gogoro-powered vehicles,” Gogoro chairman Horace Luke (陸學森) said in a statement.
Gogoro, an electric scooter maker and battery swapping solutions provider, has estimated that its solid-state batteries would increase capacity of its lithium batteries by 47 percent to 2.5 kilowatt-hours (kWh) from 1.7kWh.
Gogoro said that it does not plan to make an equity investment in ProLogium.
The company said that it would start introducing the batteries for its various generations of electric scooters when the technology strikes a balance between manufacturing costs, power capacity and safety.
Since 2015, Gogoro has made 1 million lithium-ion battery packs.
Solid-state lithium batteries are mostly the subject of research or are in pilot production and their manufacturing costs are much higher than traditional lithium-ion batteries. No company has successfully commercialized the technology yet.
ProLogium, headquartered in Taoyuan, said that it has made better progress than its global rivals and is building a mass production line in Taoyuan with an annual capacity of 2 gigawatts (GW) to 3GW.
The production line is to start operations at the end of this year, Lisa Hsu (許容禎), the company’s deputy director for marketing, said yesterday.
The company believes that it has a good opportunity to reduce the manufacturing costs of solid-state ceramic batteries to a level similar to traditional lithium-ion batteries over the next few years, when its battery manufacturing capacity increases to about 30GW, Hsu said.
ProLogium has provided nearly 8,000 solid-state battery cells to global automakers for testing and module development since its establishment in 2006.
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