11:58 - 28.03.2024

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March 28, Fineko/abc.az. The world's largest manufacturer of batteries for electric vehicles, CATL (China), claims that this year it will reduce the cost of its batteries to 50%

ABC.AZ reports, citing The Asia Times, that CATL and another market leader BYD are now producing batteries for electric vehicles without the use of cobalt, an expensive and scarce metal associated with dangerous mining methods in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

China is the largest market for electric and hybrid vehicles, but demand for electric vehicles has declined here: from growth of 96% in demand in 2022 to growth of 36% in 2023. As a result, the profits of the CATL battery giant fell for the first time in almost two years.

Until recently, the main chemical composition of electric vehicle batteries was based on lithium, nickel, manganese and cobalt. They are also known as NMC batteries. These batteries are cheaper because they do not contain cobalt. They have other advantages as well: longer service life and lower risk of fire than traditional lithium batteries. The disadvantage is that they have lower capacitance and voltage.