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Automakers around the world are joining forces with suppliers to develop the next generation of EV power. We look deeper into the developments here.
The Future of Electric Vehicles
If we told you that Ford, General Motors, and Chrysler were all joining forces to develop better battery EV technology and that the same company that builds your smartphone could hold the key to extending the range of EV drivetrains, would you believe us? Well, welcome to the mid-2020s, that’s just a taster of what’s to come very soon. The paradigm of EVs, as we came to know them in the 2010s, is about to look very different soon. Most importantly, these differences are far from skin deep.
If better battery range, faster charging times, and more accessible high-performance vehicles are what you want out of EVs, here are a few up-and-coming EV tech projects gunning to hit the scene sooner rather than later.
POSCO Future M to the Rescue
It was way back in 2022 when we first learned that Ford, GM, and Chrysler were all in talks with the same South Korean POSCO Chemical Company, now going by POSCO Future M, to supply American automakers with the finest-quality EV battery raw materials available. With all domestic automakers expected to go fully electric within the next ten years at the latest and likely even sooner, POSCO Future M’s top-notch cathodes and anodes for EV batteries, plus other vital EV infrastructure, may soon be manufactured right here in the USA for domestic automakers to use.
The highest quality components available should, in theory, mean faster charging times, longer driving ranges, and improved performance and handling owing to lighter-weight vehicle builds while gradually driving down production costs over time. Paired with higher-quality raw materials than average, like nickel, lithium, and cobalt, it all theoretically combines to help EVs inch closer to parity with ICE vehicles regarding range and refueling times. The big three US automakers aren’t the only ones ready to utilize POSCO Future M’s raw materials and battery accessories. Firms in China and Europe want in as well, even if one collaboration between POSCO Future M and the Chinese Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt firm recently went south unexpectedly.
Galaxy Phones on Four Wheels? Tell Us More
South Korea is a battery-producing juggernaut in many forms other than EVs. Statistically, roughly a quarter of all Americans have a Samsung smartphone in their pocket. Yet, the same expertise that Samsung forged in building a legitimate competitor to Apple’s iPhone is about to pay dividends in the automotive space. It was once popularly believed that to build an EV with 600 miles of range, it would be so expensive that not even hedge fund tycoons would sneeze at it. But if Samsung’s in-house developed solid-state battery technology is to be believed, this might not be the case for long.
Solid-state batteries with solid electrolyte cores theoretically store more energy per cell than traditional EV batteries. They allow lithium ions to flow freely between charged and discharged states as they travel between cathodes and anodes. With no moving parts to wear out and a higher tolerance for thermal variables, Samsung hopes their proprietary formula for solid-state batteries will hit the high-end EV and plug-in hybrid market by 2027 at the earliest. In short, these could double current EV ranges in the next three years if all goes according to plans.
Kicking Lithium to the Curb
But what if you’re conscious of the fact that the lithium you find in most batteries has significant environmental costs? It doesn’t end with just lithium. Cobalt, copper, nickel, and a few other elements found in nature might not be rare Earth metals, but the process of digging these materials out of the ground and refining them into batteries is a nasty process indeed. That’s where an Austin, Texas-based Group1 firm comes in. By harnessing the same element that makes bananas a healthy snack, Group1 aims to manufacture potassium-based battery cells with equal to greater charge times, range, and road performance than contemporary Lithium-ion units.
Not to say the Chiquita Banana company has a lucrative side gig as an EV materials supplier, but traditional potassium mines right here in North America could theoretically make lithium mining in far-off places an unnecessary expense, reducing carbon footprints and manufacturing pollution in the process. Will novel potassium-ion batteries power the next generation of EVs and plug-in hybrids? It’s tough to say, but Group1 could be one of the wealthiest companies in Austin’s sprawling tech sector if they can figure it out.
Some Help from Uncle Sam
But what good is a souped-up EV battery without a sufficient national charging network to power it? Through recently passed government initiatives to aid the proliferation of EV charging hubs across the nation to the tune of $5 billion in subsidies yearly. No state in the union received less than $2.5 million in federal funding in the 2022 fiscal year to bolster EV charging station networks in regions with varying levels of accessibility. Of course, that level of money goes a lot further in Montana or Wyoming than, say, Washington D.C. or New York.
Reports as of recent put progress on the national network as still not where it needs to be at this juncture. But even if congressional support for public funding to the network dries up, it’s fair to say the private sector will finish the job regardless in support of various OEMS. As of September 2024, the US Joint Office of Energy and Transportation released a memo stating that 192,000 level 2/DC charging stations were extant across the US. This is on par with the approximately 196,643 gas stations from California to New York, but with gas stations generally offering more pumps per station than the equivalent EV charging hub. Will fortunes change soon? Stay tuned to find out.
