US Department of Energy announced this week that Solid Power, a company that creates solid-state batteries, will receive over $5 million from the US DOE. According to DOE, the purpose of the funding was to help the company to continue developing its technology which showed the potential to reduce the cost of EV batteries significantly.
According to Electrek, Solid Power is still raising money to expand the production of nickel- and cobalt-free cells for electric vehicles. The funds given by the US DOE are undoubtedly a big help to their solid-state battery production.
About Solid Power
A US-based battery manufacturer, Solid Power, focuses on solid-state, sulfide-based electrolyte technology.
The company wants to commercialize its solid-state, sulfide-based electrolyte technology.
In order to produce more energy-dense cells for the EV industry at or close to parity in price with current lithium-ion batteries, Electrek reported.
Solid Power’s Partnerships
Who has been investing in Solid Power? According to Electrek, these are the EV companies that made investments with Solid Power:
- Ford
- BMW
- Hyundai
- SK Innovation (announced in October 2021)
Additionally, according to Electrek, Solid Power supplies Ford and BMW with a solid-state battery pilot manufacturing line. It was unveiled by Solid Power in June of 2022, ahead of a target date for providing the automakers with the cells by the end of 2022.
Electrek also reported that Solid Power confirmed in mid-December that it would co-develop its solid-state technology in the US with longtime partner BMW. The German automaker will set up its assembly lines abroad to speed up development toward scaled cell production. As part of the agreement, BMW agreed to pay Solid Power $20 million to license the technology.
Following a grant from the US Department of Energy, Solid Power now has an even larger financial backup to continue its research.
The US DOE Movement
The DOE employs a $42 million package to fund 12 distinct initiatives under the Electric Vehicles for American Low-Carbon Living (EVs4ALL) program. This fund includes the over $5 million recently granted to Solid Power.
Strengthening US supply chains that support the development of cutting-edge battery technologies that power electric vehicle is the common objective of these 12 projects.
What has been the effort of the Biden administration?
Electrek reported that the Biden administration had spent the last three years:
- Encourage electrification across the government and society
- Invest in renewable energy
- Improve charging infrastructure
- Reduce the US’s reliance on foreign nations for supply chain elements like battery components
US DOE and Solid Power Collaboration
It should not come as a surprise that Solid Power has the DOE’s support to continue its work as it is an American battery producer working to create cells that are not only more energy-dense than lithium-ion but also lighter, thinner, and less volatile, Electrek reported.
According to Electrek, the energy-dense cell manufacturer Solid Power released a statement Wednesday in response to the US Dept. of Energy’s announcement that it has funded Solid Power with $5.6 million. David Jansen, the battery company’s interim president, CEO, and chair, released a statement:
“Replacing costly nickel and cobalt in the cathode with sulfur could lead to a lower-cost EV battery with improved energy and fast-charging capabilities. I’d like to thank the Solid Power development team for their outstanding work and the DOE for their continued confidence in our company’s value proposition.”
Electrek added that scaled production of solid-state batteries still seems far off. Still, new funding from DOE should undoubtedly aid in advancing the development process, especially on their lands.
