23-04-2025
Long-range electric vehicles are almost here—but how soon can you drive one?
The race for a better battery
Above The Changan VIIA concept car features scissor doors and a convertible roof (Photo: Changan)
A solid-state battery gets its name from the material that replaces the liquid electrolyte in a typical lithium ion battery. The solid electrolyte is made of either glass, ceramic or metallic material. The removal of the liquid electrolyte allows the battery to be more densely packed. Solid-state batteries can theoretically have an energy density of 400 to 600 Wh/kg.
Chinese automobile and EV maker Changan has announced that it will roll out prototype vehicles with solid-state batteries at the end of 2025 to early 2026. Mass production of the solid-state battery will begin by 2027. Changan has said that a solid-state battery with a 400 Wh/kg energy density will enable an EV with up to 1,500 km range on a single full charge. Previously, CATL, the world's largest battery manufacturer, announced that it will make solid-state batteries in small batches by 2027. BYD revealed a similar timeline for its solid-state battery rollout. The future of solid-state battery technology
Above The Golden Shield battery developed by Changan (Photo: Changan)
To prepare for the development of solid-state batteries, the Chinese government has instituted the China All-Solid-State Battery Collaborative Innovation Platform (CASIP) in 2024. Members include automotive and battery manufacturing companies such as BYD, NIO, EVE Energy, CALB, Gotion and SVOLT. The consortium's goal is to make solid-state battery production competitive while establishing a supply chain by 2030.
While the development of solid-state batteries are moving at a rapid clip by industry standards, other car makers have set their timelines that are further along. There are still a lot of technical hurdles to overcome. Toyota has promised to introduce solid-state battery EVs by 2027, with a 2030 target date for mass production. Honda began a test production of solid-state batteries in January this year. Nissan has promised a timeline of early 2029 for its solid-state battery-powered EVs. Hyundai and Kia have pushed back on the launch of solid-state EV batteries by 2030.
Above The NIO ET7 electric sedan has a range of 1,050 km thanks to its semi-solid-state battery pack (Photo: NIO)
For the short term, Chinese EV makers such as NIO have released a semi-solid-state battery that can be swapped in their EVs. The battery has a 150 kWh capacity, making it the largest capacity battery pack made in China with the highest energy density of 360 Wh/kg. The battery was tested on a NIO ET7 EV sedan, which travelled over 1,044 km on a single charge.
