General Motors Steven Petty Jr.'s battery technician focuses on the alignment of electrodes on an anode sample for an LMR prototype battery cell in manufacturing.
Photo by Steve Fecht for General Motors
Warren, Mich. – General Motors plans to pass a pioneer from a new “revolutionary” EV battery technology which, according to the automaker, will reduce costs and increase the profitability of its largest SUVs and electric trucks.
GM targets new batteries and chemistry inside – called prismatic battery cells rich in lithium manganese (LMR) – to be used in full -size electric vehicles such as its Silverado chevrolet and IQ climbing from 2028.
The new batteries use more prevalent and cheaper minerals such as manganese instead of larger quantities of cobalt and nickel which are currently used in GM batteries and other car manufacturers.
Different EV battery chemies have an impact, among others, among others, among others.
“LMR unlocks the range and premium performance at an affordable cost,” said Kurt Kelty, GM vice-president of battery, propulsion and sustainability, during a media event at the technological and design campus of the automaker in the suburbs of Detroit. “It's a battery that changes the game for electric trucks.”
The expectations of the first GM brand intervened after the Rival rival rival Ford engine Earlier, this month announced his intention to launch what he called in the same way the LMR batteries “which change the game” before 2030.
GM Research and Development Battery Cell Systems Direction Direction, Mei Cai, Ph.D., supervises engineers who develop coating materials for new generation battery prototypes in the coating laboratory of the GM World Technical Center in Warren, Michigan in 2021.
GM
The LMR batteries have been around for decades, but they have historically offered a much shorter lifespan, according to Sam Abuelsamid, vice-president of market studies of the Telemetry Automobile Consulting Society.
This is a problem that GM thinks that it has solved with its LMR batteries, which are developed in partnership with LG Energy Solution.
Ultium cells, a GM and LG Energy Solution joint venture, plans to start the commercial production of LMR prismatic cells in the United States by 2028, with the pre-production which should start in an LG energy solution installation by the end of 2027.
LMR prismatic cells
Prismatic cells refer to the shape or shape of the battery square cells. Historically, they were used in hybrid vehicles such as the Toyota Prius, followed more recently by electric vehicles.
GM, for several years, has used rectangular “pocket” cells in the United States, also using cylindrical cells in China. GM says he started looking for Lithium-ion battery cells in manganese in 2015, accelerating technological development in recent years.
GM expects the new prismatic LMR batteries and support technologies to decrease hundreds of books from its large electric vehicles. New batteries will have 50% less parts as well as a significant reduction in the number of modules or cell boxes, inside vehicle batteries, said GM.
An employee has a full -size LMR prototype battery cell at General Motors Wallace Battery Cell Innovation Center. GM prototyped about 300 full LMR cells because it worked with the LG energy solution to break the code on chemistry.
Photo by Steve Fecht for General Motors
For electric vehicles, battery cells are generally combined with battery modules, which are then installed in batteries that are integrated into a vehicle.
Kelty said that LMR batteries will be complementary to the current batteries of the current GM cover, formerly known as Ultium, as well as the upcoming prismatic battery cells – lithium iron phosphate – which should be used in smaller and entry EV vehicles.
“We are going through a massive growth phase in our company EV side,” said Kelty, noting that GM has exceeded Tesla As a higher EV battery manufacturer in North America. “We really build an electrification power.”
GM expects the LMR prismatic battery cells to have an energy density 33% higher, providing miles of beach addition, compared to the most efficient LFP cells, but at a comparable cost.
Kelty refused to discuss the specific cost of batteries, commonly measured in dollars per kilowatt hour, or KWH, but confirmed that the company had achieved a cost reduction of $ 60 per kilowatt hour last year.
Electric Chevrolet Silverado shown at the New York Auto Show, April 2022.
Scott Mlyn | CNBC
The average cost of batteries for electric vehicles dropped by $ 20% per kilowatt hour in 2024, according to a survey on Bloombergnef battery prices published in December.
Abuelsamid, a former engineer who has become an analyst, believes that GM packs with LMR prismatic batteries are probably around $ 80 to $ 90 per kWh. This is compared to at least $ 125 per kWh for GM's current batteries, he said.
GM refused to reveal whether the vehicles with LMR batteries will be profitable when launching. Detroit's automaker said that almost 50% of its current electric vehicles in the first quarter were positive for variable benefit, which means that they have generated enough income to cover their production costs.
'Next step'
Kelty described LMR as the “next step” in GM's GM plans. The automaker has flowed billions of dollars into electrification as part of a continuous, but reduced plan under the CEO of GM, Mary Barra.
In 2021, Barra said that GM would exclusively offer electric vehicles by 2035, investing $ 35 billion between 2020 and 2025. The company has since declared that customer demand – which has been slower than expected – will dictate its electric vehicle plans. Nor has he disclosed his total investment of electric vehicles so far.
GM estimates that LMR batteries will help reduce obstacles to the adoption of electric vehicle consumers. In particular, the concerns about the cost and the range. Other obstacles, such as the burden of infrastructure and consumer education, remain.
GM aims to offer more than 400 miles of range in an electric truck while saving significant battery costs compared to today's electric vehicles.
