The recycling of lithium-ion batteries is vitally important to the future of electric power, explains Gregg Smith at Orbia Advance, writing for WEF. Making a battery has a significant carbon footprint of its own. Yet recycling can be one tenth the cost of manufacturing a battery from scratch. And energy security is enhanced by lessening dependence on mining countries and other suppliers. It’s why Europe will require new batteries to contain at … [Read more...]
Swappable EV batteries are on the rise in China and India. Why not the West?
Western governments are struggling to meet their targets for zero-emission vehicles, says ManMohan Sodhi at City University of London. There’s been a slowdown of sales that has a lot to do with the high cost of new EVs and the lack of charging infrastructure. Meanwhile, in China and India battery swapping – instead of charging your own battery – is on the rise. Swapping can take minutes. Knowing you can swap means you don’t need a big battery for … [Read more...]
Zero-Emission Trucks can be cost competitive by 2035 (and much sooner depending on size and range)
Zero-emission medium- and heavy-duty vehicles (MHDVs) such as battery electric and hydrogen fuel cell electric, in every size and range category, can be cost competitive with their diesel equivalents by 2035. In several of those categories it can be much sooner – within the next six years - explains Julia Thomas at NREL. Researchers there have modelled how the total cost of driving for zero-emission and diesel MHDVs can evolve over time under … [Read more...]
A global review of Battery Storage: the fastest growing clean energy technology today
The IEA report “Batteries and Secure Energy Transitions” looks at the impressive global progress, future projections, and risks for batteries across all applications. 2023 saw deployment in the power sector more than double. Strong growth occurred for utility-scale batteries, behind-the-meter, mini-grids, solar home systems, and EVs. Lithium-ion batteries dominate overwhelmingly due to continued cost reductions and performance improvements. And … [Read more...]
Analysis of Clean Technology Manufacturing around the world: solar PV, wind, batteries, electrolysers, heat pumps
For every nation, clean technology manufacturing can bring economic security, employment, and resilience to clean energy transitions, says the IEA. The sector is now so significant that it’s also impacting overall GDP performance: in 2023, clean technology manufacturing alone accounted for around 4% of global GDP growth and nearly 10% of global investment growth. Here, the IEA summarises its first-of-its-kind “Energy Technology Perspectives … [Read more...]
V2G: modelling how EV batteries can provide storage to the grid
V2G (vehicle-to-grid) technology allows parked EVs to store and/or inject electricity into the grid when needed. The main benefit is to avoid the expense and disruption of building dedicated large-scale grid batteries when EVs and charging infrastructure are already ramping up. Though most EVs and charge points are not V2G-ready, now is the time to plan ahead, measure the true potential and identify the challenges. Ibtihal Abdelmotteleb, Matteo … [Read more...]
Batteries made of super-hot sand: for long-duration grid storage at $4 to $10 per kWh
Our electric future needs low-cost long-duration storage for grids. Per kWh, pumped hydropower is about $60, compressed air energy storage (CAES) costs from $150 to $300, and lithium-ion batteries cost around $300 (and only store energy from one to four hours). Wayne Hicks at NREL describes research into thermal energy storage (TES) using solid particles such as sand which is abundant worldwide. With a duration lasting hundreds of hours, … [Read more...]
EVs, Batteries: how can Europe use tariffs on China without starting a trade war?
Europe must decarbonise as fast as possible while safeguarding essential economic, social and security interests. Decarbonisation without deindustrialisation needs carefully thought-out trade policy, and tariffs can be an effective instrument, explains T&E, summarising its recently released paper. Almost a fifth of all EVs sold in the EU last year were made in China. Over half of those were made by Western carmakers operating in China, but … [Read more...]
Iron-air batteries: long-duration grid storage targets 1/10th the cost of lithium-ion
Wind and solar need cheap, long-duration storage to even out its inherent weather-determined intermittency. Deborah Halber, writing for MIT News, describes the development of iron-air batteries. Iron is cheap and available worldwide. Storage duration is multi-day. They are much heavier and take up more space than lithium-ion batteries, but that doesn’t matter for immobile grid storage. The target price tag of $20/kWh (one-tenth the cost of … [Read more...]
China’s CATL to cut its EV battery costs by up to 50% this year, heralding a price war
China’s CATL, the world’s largest producer of EV batteries, is saying it will slash the cost of its batteries by up to 50% this year as part of a price war with China’s second largest maker, BYD subsidiary FinDreams. The main cause is the overproduction of batteries in China: the oversupply means prices must fall. Muhammad Rizwan Azhar, Waqas Uzair and Yasir Arafat at Edith Cowan University look at the causes and implications, but add that … [Read more...]
Organic cathode can replace Cobalt in Batteries: similar performance, faster charging, cheaper to make
In most lithium-ion batteries, the cathode contains cobalt. But cobalt is a scarce metal, found mostly in politically unstable countries, its extraction is hazardous for miners and generates toxic waste. And as demand for batteries globally keeps rising, so too will the cost of cobalt. Anne Trafton at MIT describes the development of an alternative cathode made of organic materials. Its structure is similar to graphite. It can conduct electricity … [Read more...]
Research into how electrons and protons couple at an electrode can create more efficient fuel cells, electrolysers
Every efficiency gain discovered in the lab feeds through to the final cost of electricity. Anne Trafton at MIT describes new research looking at how electrons and protons couple at an electrode surface, which drives electric current. It’s a critical step in many energy technologies, including fuel cells, hydrogen electrolysers, batteries, and CO2 conversion into chemical fuels. The first step was to develop a way to design electrode surfaces … [Read more...]
Batteries are still getting exponentially cheaper, more efficient: ready to displace half of global fossil fuel demand by 2045?
A new report by RMI says batteries are on the path to replace 175 EJ of fossil fuel demand in the power sector, 86 EJ of fossil fuels from road transport and can put at risk another 23 EJ from shipping and aviation. That equates to a phaseout of half of global fossil fuel demand in the next two decades. Daan Walter, Sam Butler-Sloss and Kingsmill Bond at RMI summarise the findings in six graphs with explanations. Battery sales are growing … [Read more...]
Italy: Capacity Auctions for 71 GWh of additional Grid Storage
Italy needs 71 GWh of new utility-scale electricity storage capacity by 2030 to meet EU targets to cut emissions by at least 55% by 2030, according to Terna which manages Italy’s transmission grid. ***STOP PRESS*** This Tuesday at 11:00 CET, Energy Post is exclusive media partner to a dedicated webinar (organised by ATA Insights/RENMAD) on Capacity Market Auctions REGISTER FREE HERE. In this article, Sara Stefanini summarises the Terna study, … [Read more...]
France is subsidising made-in-EU EVs with low carbon footprints. Europe must follow
Last year, France announced new green eligibility rules for awarding subsidies to EVs. Starting this year, an incentive of €5,000-€7,000 will only be awarded to electric cars with a production carbon footprint below 14.75 tonnes of CO2. It’s a first in environmental policymaking which the EU should be delivering across the region, says Lucien Mathieu at T&E. And not just for environmental reasons. It will promote EVs made in Europe where … [Read more...]
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