On Tuesday, the US Department of Energy announced that they allotted more than $5 million to the two San Diego battery manufacturing companies to strengthen the domestic supply chain for advanced batteries that run electric vehicles.
The San Diego companies: South 8 Technologies and Tyfast Energy
According to 10 News San Diego, South 8 Technologies, the first to create and market a new, patented liquefied gas electrolyte for electrochemical energy storage systems of the next generation, and Tyfast Energy, a company that produces semiconductors and batteries, are the companies that received funding from the DOE’s Electric Vehicles for American Low-Carbon Living program, which granted a total of $42 million to ten other initiatives.
The program in which South 8 Technologies and Tyfast Energy took part is the EVs4ALL Program.
The EVs4ALL funding program
The expansion of EV batteries is what the program aims for. However, how can one expand EV batteries?
Projects that aim to increase domestic EV adoption by creating batteries that “last longer, charge faster, function efficiently in freezing temperatures, and have superior overall range retention” were chosen for the EVs4ALL funding.
The DOE’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy oversees the EVs4ALL initiative. In order to “address and remove key technology barriers to EV adoption by developing next-generation battery technologies,” ARPA-E chose 12 teams from universities, government laboratories, and the corporate sector.
10 News San Diego reports that the local grants are:
· South 8 Technologies – With a grant of $3,152,000 to create Li-ion battery cells with a quick charging capability using liquefied gas electrolyte technology.
· Tyfast Energy – With a grant of $2,823,199 for creating a “combination of electrode materials and electrolyte chemistry to enable a high-energy density, ultrafast-charging battery with a long cycle life.”
The Government’s purpose for the EV battery expansion
David M. Turk, US Deputy Secretary of Energy, visited South 8 Technologies in San Diego on Tuesday. 10 News San Diego reported that according to a DOE statement, Turk declared the investment to “support President Joe Biden’s goal to develop advanced technologies in America that will power the clean energy transition globally and for EVs to make up half of all domestic vehicles sales in 2030.”
“Electric vehicle sales in America have tripled since the start of this administration, and by addressing battery efficiency, resiliency, and affordability, the projects announced today will make EVs attractive to even more drivers.”
US Secretary of Energy, Jennifer M. Granholm
