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.
TECH TITAN: Pandemic-era demand for semiconductors turbocharged the nation’s GDP per capita to surpass South Korea’s, but it still remains half that of Singapore Taiwan is set to surpass South Korea this year in terms of wealth for the first time in more than two decades, marking a shift in Asia’s economic ranks made possible by the ascent of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電). According to the latest forecasts released on Thursday by the central bank, Taiwan’s GDP is expected to expand 4.55 percent this year, a further upward revision from the 4.45 percent estimate made by the statistics bureau last month. The growth trajectory puts Taiwan on track to exceed South Korea’s GDP per capita — a key measure of living standards — a
READY TO HELP: Should TSMC require assistance, the government would fully cooperate in helping to speed up the establishment of the Chiayi plant, an official said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday said its investment plans in Taiwan are “unchanged” amid speculation that the chipmaker might have suspended construction work on its second chip packaging plant in Chiayi County and plans to move equipment arranged for the plant to the US. The Chinese-language Economic Daily News reported earlier yesterday that TSMC had halted the construction of the chip packaging plant, which was scheduled to be completed next year and begin mass production in 2028. TSMC did not directly address whether construction of the plant had halted, but said its investment plans in Taiwan remain “unchanged.” The chipmaker started
MORTGAGE WORRIES: About 34% of respondents to a survey said they would approach multiple lenders to pay for a home, while 29.2% said they would ask family for help New housing projects in Taiwan’s six special municipalities, as well as Hsinchu city and county, are projected to total NT$710.65 billion (US$23.61 billion) in the upcoming fall sales season, a record 30 percent decrease from a year earlier, as tighter mortgage rules prompt developers to pull back, property listing platform 591.com (591新建案) said yesterday. The number of projects has also fallen to 312, a more than 20 percent decrease year-on-year, underscoring weakening sentiment and momentum amid lingering policy and financing headwinds. New Taipei City and Taoyuan bucked the downturn in project value, while Taipei, Hsinchu city and county, Taichung, Tainan and Kaohsiung
LOOKING BRIGHT: Taiwanese tech stocks have been trading at 18 to 19 times earnings, beating the 15 percent long-term average amid AI-driven optimism, an analyst said Taiwan’s economy could expand by as much as 5 percent this year, fueled by its technology manufacturing edge amid a global artificial intelligence (AI) boom, while tariff exemptions on semiconductor products keep the country’s levy burden low despite a headline rate of 20 percent, UBS Investment Bank said yesterday. “Although Washington has imposed a 20 percent tariff on goods from Taiwan, exemptions for semiconductors keep the weighted average low,” UBS senior economist for Asia and China William Deng (鄧維慎) said. The growth momentum is expected to extend into next year, with technology companies’ revenue projected to rise 17 percent, UBS research head