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loom","sodium-ion-batteries-advance-with-byd-northvolt-plans-but-supply-chain-challenges-loom","article/sodium-ion-batteries-advance-with-byd-northvolt-plans-but-supply-chain-challenges-loom",{"_uid":547,"date":548,"tags":549,"editor":556,"content":566,"excerpt":724,"featured":51,"reporter":725,"_editable":729,"component":730,"seo_title":543,"categories":731,"visibility":735,"author_company":49,"featured_image":736,"seo_description":724,"author_full_name":49,"author_job_title":49,"formattedDate":740,"formattedArticleDate":741},"abc2de53-f7f2-48d7-bb3f-197b2bf4c15b","2023-11-23 00:00",[550,553],{"slug":551,"name":552},"sodium-ion-2","Sodium ion",{"slug":554,"name":555},"sodium-ion-batteries","Sodium Ion Batteries",[557],{"slug":558,"name":559,"content":560},"didi-bostock","Didi Bostock",{"job_title":561,"image":562,"bio":564,"linkedin":565},"Editor - Energy Transition & Economics",{"filename":563},"https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/512x512/2c5ca5c1a3/didi-bostock.jpeg","Didi is the Energy Transition & Economics Editor at Benchmark, covering a broad range of markets across the energy transition. His remit spans from downstream sectors such as BESS and EVs, through to midstream such as new technologies and battery production, to upstream critical minerals mining. He also leads on financial analysis across these supply chains, alongside in-depth policy analysis.\n","https://www.linkedin.com/in/didi-bostock-656342198/",{"type":567,"content":568},"doc",[569,586,591,596,601,606,611,618,623,628,633,642,647,652,657,662,669,674,687,692,697,702,707,712,717],{"type":570,"attrs":571,"content":572},"paragraph",{"textAlign":49},[573,576,584],{"text":574,"type":575},"China’s BYD said it would build a RMB 10 billion ($1.4 billion) factory to produce ","text",{"text":577,"type":575,"marks":578},"sodium ion batteries",[579],{"type":580,"attrs":581},"link",{"href":582,"uuid":49,"anchor":49,"target":49,"linktype":583},"https://www.benchmarkminerals.com/market-assessments/sodium-ion-batteries/","url",{"text":585,"type":575}," with conglomerate Huaihai group, the largest announced plant by a leading producer. ",{"type":570,"attrs":587,"content":588},{"textAlign":49},[589],{"text":590,"type":575},"China’s largest electric carmaker, and second largest cell producer of lithium-ion batteries behind CATL, said the plant in Xuzhou would have the capacity to produce around 30 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of sodium ion battery cells.",{"type":570,"attrs":592,"content":593},{"textAlign":49},[594],{"text":595,"type":575},"The announcement doubles the global pipeline capacity of sodium ion cells from experienced Tier 1 suppliers, according to Benchmark. ",{"type":570,"attrs":597,"content":598},{"textAlign":49},[599],{"text":600,"type":575},"“It’s a huge announcement from a producer that knows what they’re doing,” Rory McNulty, an analyst at Benchmark, said. ",{"type":570,"attrs":602,"content":603},{"textAlign":49},[604],{"text":605,"type":575},"BYD’s announcement comes as European battery producer Northvolt also said it had developed a sodium ion cell with Swedish startup Altris, which could lead to the first sodium ion pilot plant in the region.",{"type":570,"attrs":607,"content":608},{"textAlign":49},[609],{"text":610,"type":575},"The developments come despite falling lithium prices, highlighting how the global battery industry is still moving forward with sodium ion plans, in an effort to diversify the supply chain, McNulty said. ",{"type":612,"attrs":613,"content":615},"heading",{"level":614,"textAlign":49},4,[616],{"text":617,"type":575},"Sodium ion battery capacity",{"type":570,"attrs":619,"content":620},{"textAlign":49},[621],{"text":622,"type":575},"The majority of announced sodium ion battery capacity is from companies who have not produced batteries before. Benchmark is tracking almost 300 GWh of planned sodium ion battery capacity, but most of this is attributed to Tier 2 and Tier 3 suppliers. ",{"type":570,"attrs":624,"content":625},{"textAlign":49},[626],{"text":627,"type":575},"Northvolt said its battery cell uses a hard carbon anode and a Prussian White-based cathode and has an energy density of 160 watt-hours per kilogram, comparable with the lower end of lithium iron phosphate (LFP) cells. ",{"type":570,"attrs":629,"content":630},{"textAlign":49},[631],{"text":632,"type":575},"“Northvolt plans to be the first to industrialise Prussian White-based batteries and bring them to commercial markets,” it said. ",{"type":570,"attrs":634,"content":635},{"textAlign":49},[636],{"type":637,"attrs":638},"image",{"id":49,"alt":639,"src":640,"title":49,"source":49,"copyright":49,"meta_data":641},"","https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/cdd3626d5b/bm-sodium-ion-pipeline-capacity.png",{},{"type":612,"attrs":643,"content":644},{"level":614,"textAlign":49},[645],{"text":646,"type":575},"Cost advantage",{"type":570,"attrs":648,"content":649},{"textAlign":49},[650],{"text":651,"type":575},"Sodium ion batteries promise to be lower cost, safer to transport and more sustainable than current lithium ion chemistries, since they use no cobalt and nickel.",{"type":570,"attrs":653,"content":654},{"textAlign":49},[655],{"text":656,"type":575},"Aluminium can also be used as the current collector at both ends of the battery cell, instead of copper for the anode.  ",{"type":570,"attrs":658,"content":659},{"textAlign":49},[660],{"text":661,"type":575},"That could make them a promising technology for energy storage or smaller electric vehicles. Founded in 1976, Huaihai produces small electric vehicles and scooters. ",{"type":570,"attrs":663,"content":664},{"textAlign":49},[665],{"type":637,"attrs":666},{"id":49,"alt":639,"src":667,"title":49,"source":49,"copyright":49,"meta_data":668},"https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/1cfab30b67/bm-basics-of-sodium-ion.png",{},{"type":570,"attrs":670,"content":671},{"textAlign":49},[672],{"text":673,"type":575},"But a sharp fall in lithium prices this year has eroded their potential cost advantage. ",{"type":570,"attrs":675,"content":676},{"textAlign":49},[677,679,685],{"text":678,"type":575},"Chinese battery-grade lithium carbonate prices have fallen by 74% this year to RMB 140,000 ($19,725) a tonne, according to ",{"text":680,"type":575,"marks":681},"Benchmark’s Lithium Price Assessment",[682],{"type":580,"attrs":683},{"href":684,"uuid":49,"anchor":49,"target":49,"linktype":583},"https://www.benchmarkminerals.com/price-assessments/lithium/portal/",{"text":686,"type":575},". ",{"type":570,"attrs":688,"content":689},{"textAlign":49},[690],{"text":691,"type":575},"As a result the price of prismatic lithium iron phosphate (LFP) cells has fallen by 17% this year in China and was last assessed at $80 a kWh, according to Benchmark. ",{"type":570,"attrs":693,"content":694},{"textAlign":49},[695],{"text":696,"type":575},"In addition, a key problem for sodium ion cells is scaling up the supply chain – especially the production of the hard carbon anode, McNulty said. ",{"type":612,"attrs":698,"content":699},{"level":614,"textAlign":49},[700],{"text":701,"type":575},"Supply chain limitations",{"type":570,"attrs":703,"content":704},{"textAlign":49},[705],{"text":706,"type":575},"The current supply of hard carbon is not enough to supply planned sodium ion battery cell capacity, according to Benchmark. ",{"type":570,"attrs":708,"content":709},{"textAlign":49},[710],{"text":711,"type":575},"There is less than 100 GWh of hard carbon capacity announced, according to Benchmark. In terms of Tier 1 producers, only 12 GWh of Tier 1 hard carbon production is expected by 2030, to support a projected 120 GWh of high-case forecast cell production.",{"type":570,"attrs":713,"content":714},{"textAlign":49},[715],{"text":716,"type":575},"“Until we see those supply chains moving in the same way that the battery makers are moving, we’ve got to take everything with a bit of a pinch of salt because you can’t make a battery without an anode,” McNulty said.",{"type":570,"attrs":718,"content":719},{"textAlign":49},[720],{"type":637,"attrs":721},{"id":49,"alt":639,"src":722,"title":49,"source":49,"copyright":49,"meta_data":723},"https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/4ce197395f/bm-sodium-ion-and-hard-carbon-supply.png",{},"China’s BYD said it would build a RMB 10 billion ($1.4 billion) factory to produce sodium ion batteries with conglomerate Huaihai group, the largest announced plant by a leading producer. China’s largest electric carmaker, and second largest cell producer of lithium-ion batteries behind CATL, said the plant in Xuzhou would have the capacity to produce […]",[726],{"slug":558,"name":559,"content":727},{"job_title":561,"image":728,"bio":564,"linkedin":565},{"filename":563},"\u003C!--#storyblok#{\"name\": \"article\", \"space\": \"\", \"uid\": \"abc2de53-f7f2-48d7-bb3f-197b2bf4c15b\", \"id\": \"\"}-->","article",[732],{"slug":733,"name":734},"batteries","Batteries","private",{"id":49,"alt":639,"name":639,"focus":639,"title":639,"source":639,"filename":737,"copyright":639,"fieldtype":738,"meta_data":739,"is_external_url":51},"https://a.storyblok.com/f/287943243085208/5804b457f5/bm-northvolt-sodium-ion.jpg","asset",{"alt":639,"title":639,"source":639,"copyright":639},"Nov 23, 2023","23rd November 2023",[],[],1780670069698]