“This can be a large deal,” stated Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer in a press convention unveiling plans for the manufacturing unit. Increasing battery choices will permit Ford to “construct extra EVs sooner, and finally make them extra inexpensive,” stated Invoice Ford, Ford’s government chair.
Also referred to as lithium ferrous phosphate (LFP) batteries, the kind to be produced on the new plant are a lower-cost various to the nickel- and cobalt-containing batteries utilized in most electrical automobiles within the US and Europe at present. Whereas the expertise has grown in reputation in China, Ford’s manufacturing unit, developed in partnership with the Chinese language battery large CATL, marks a milestone within the West. By reducing prices whereas additionally boosting charging velocity and lengthening lifetime, LFP batteries may assist broaden EV choices for drivers.
Lithium-ion batteries all comprise lithium, which helps retailer cost in part of the battery known as the cathode. However lithium doesn’t do that job alone: it’s joined within the cathode by a supporting forged of different supplies.
The most typical sort of cathode utilized in automobiles at present incorporates nickel, manganese, and cobalt along with lithium. Some automakers, like Tesla, use one other cathode chemistry made with nickel, cobalt, and aluminum. Each these cathode varieties have risen to prominence partially as a result of they’ve excessive power density, which means the batteries will probably be smaller and lighter than others that may retailer the identical quantity of power.
Whereas these two was the default decisions for cathodes in EV batteries, lithium iron phosphate, an older chemistry, has seen a comeback previously few years, largely pushed by enormous progress in China.
These iron-containing batteries are typically about 20% cheaper than different lithium-ion batteries with the identical capability at present. That is partly as a result of LFP doesn’t comprise cobalt or nickel, costly metals which have seen enormous worth swings lately. Battery makers are additionally working to scale back cobalt content material as a result of mining the steel has been tied to significantly dangerous working circumstances.
Making cathodes with out cobalt and nickel may assist automakers minimize prices, and a few have already begun to shift battery chemistry utilized in automobiles bought within the US. Tesla imports LFP cells from China at present for some fashions, together with its Mannequin 3. Ford beforehand introduced that it could begin utilizing the expertise in its Mach-E in 2023 and within the F-150 Lightning in 2024.
With its newly introduced manufacturing unit, Ford would change into the primary automaker to supply LFP batteries within the US. The brand new facility, which is able to use expertise from CATL, may assist kick-start LFP manufacturing within the US extra broadly. “It’s a pivotal level for the North American manufacturing panorama,” says Evelina Stoikou, a battery expertise analyst at BloombergNEF, an energy-focused analysis agency.
