S Korea: SES invested by SK, Hyundai Motor to supply lithium metal battery next year
Nov 08, 2021
Seoul [South Korea], November 8 (ANI/Global Economic): SES, the U.S. battery manufacturer invested by SK and Hyundai Motor released the world-largest lithium metal battery with a capacity of more than 107Ah 'Apollo'.
SES is planning to mass-produce prototypes of lithium metal batteries and supply Hyundai Motor and GM (General Motors) next year and commercialize in 2025.
According to the industry on the 5th, SES held the '1st SES Battery World' for its investors and media online on the 4th, and unveiled its 107Ah lithium metal battery 'Apollo.' It is the first time that the lithium metal battery with more than 100Ah has been unveiled.
It weighs only 0.982kg and has high-speed specifications that can charge from 10% to 90% in 12 minutes.
The energy density is 417Wh (Watt hours) per kg and it is up to three times that of lithium-ion batteries mainly used for electric vehicles (EV). EVs equipped with lithium-ion batteries can drive about 400km on a single charge, but EVs with lithium metal batteries of the same capacity can drive 700 km.
"Compared to existing lithium-ion batteries and solid-state batteries that are considered as next-generation batteries, SES' lithium metal batteries are more suitable for safety, driving distance, cost-saving, and performance required by automobile companies," said Dr. Chi Chao Hu, the founder and CEO of SES. "As its energy capacity is large and volume is small, it can greatly increase the driving distance of the electric vehicles."
SES is conducting a test of lithium metal batteries to be installed in Hyundai Motor Company and GM U.S.' EVs. When the test of sample A is completed next year, the company is planning to complete all tests for sample B and sample C by 2023 and 2024, respectively, and start mass-production by 2025.
Major shareholders of SES include the largest shareholder CEO Hu, the second-largest shareholder SK, Vertex, GM, and Tianqi. In addition, Hyundai Motor, Kia, and LG Technology Ventures are investing in SES. Hyundai Motor also invested $100 million (about 120 billion won) in SES in July.
SES is a U.S. startup established by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 2012. The headquarters is located in Singapore, and it operates branches in Boston, Shanghai, and Seoul. (ANI/Global Economic)
