Tesla CEO Elon Musk and his rivals have just acknowledged that Chinese automakers are eating their lunch. But a pinch of salt could again destabilize the new world order of the automobile industry. Brands such as BYD or the Franco-Italian Stellantis are betting on sodium for electric batteries. This technology could accelerate electrification and, in the process, loosen China's control over the sector.
Sodium can be the key ingredient in electric vehicle batteries, replacing lithium, used in most current vehicles. The process is practically the same. Ions, which are electrically charged atoms, move through a liquid electrolyte, allowing the unit to store or release energy. However, the use of sodium makes the process faster than most lithium or nickel-based models. Sodium batteries can reach 80% of their capacity in just 15 minutes, the time it takes a Tesla Supercharger to charge a car for a 275 kilometer trip. In addition, sodium batteries resist better at colder temperatures.
And even more tempting, sodium is a cheaper alternative to lithium. This is because it is easily found in salt and soda ash, making it the sixth most abundant element on Earth. While there are just over 100 million metric tons of known lithium resources in the world, there are tens of billions of tons of soda ash, according to the US Geological Survey. In 2022, the cost of a lithium battery Sodium ion was $90 per kilowatt of stored energy, while cells using lithium were 30% to 40% more expensive, according to Wood Mackenzie.
The downside is that sodium batteries only store half as much energy per kilogram as lithium batteries. That means larger batteries are needed to support the weight of a Tesla Model Y or a BYD Seal over long distances. However, beyond a certain point, it is not possible to fit an oversized battery into a conventional chassis without disturbing the delicate balance between mass, proportion and aerodynamics. Consequently, unless there is a major technological advance, cars using this material will have a lower range than many models currently available on the market.
These qualities led to sodium being sidelined in the early days of electric vehicles, despite decades of research into its potential. But companies began to worry less about their shortcomings as the price of lithium and other key battery metals soared in 2021. Industry leader CATL announced plans to make cheaper sodium-ion batteries that same year and began to supply the new products to the Chinese giant Chery in April 2023.
The advantages for Westerners go beyond affordability. China's control over essential battery metals allows it to dominate the entire electric car supply chain. The country could secure access to about a third of global lithium mining production by 2025, and Chinese firms already accounted for 72% of global lithium refining capacity in 2022.
Replacing lithium with sodium offers a rebalancing opportunity. The United States has more than 90% of the world's known reserves of soda ash, the most profitable source, according to the country's Geological Survey. China has started using synthetic alternatives, but extracting sodium from natural sources can cut the cost by half, emit 70% less carbon dioxide and consume almost 80% less water, according to Turkish producer WE Soda.
Supply chains are not the only factor that could cause this technology to shift the center of gravity away from China. Sodium batteries are suitable for smaller, cheaper four-wheelers, scooters and energy storage solutions. Demand for these products is growing in India and Southeast Asia. This may favor local champions such as Mumbai-based Reliance Industries, which bought a British sodium firm in 2021.
Salt is still in its younger years. Battery makers had announced a total of 158 gigawatt hours of annual production capacity through August, according to Wood Mackenzie — that's just a little more than Musk's Nevada gigafactories can make each year. Still, the geopolitical advantages of the sodium ion are too tempting to ignore.
The authors are columnists for Reuters Breakingviews. The opinions are yours. The translation, of Carlos Gomez Belowit is the responsibility of Five days
Follow all the information Five days in Facebook, x and Linkedinor in our newsletter Five Day Agenda
_
#pinch #salt #destabilize #order #electric #cars
