China will lead the electric vehicle (EV) battery chemistry evolution - moving from popularized nickel-cobalt-manganese (NCM)523 and NCM622 batteries to the NCM811 battery, while the West would keep NCM622 for longer, according to speakers at Metal Bulletin's Battery Materials Conference, held in Shanghai from April 18-19.
The adoption of high nickel-content EV batteries will happen much faster in China than people have anticipated, Chinese and western panellists agreed at the conference. The Chinese government's push toward EVs with a higher driving range and energy density, as well as a strong desire to substitute cobalt due to its rising price, are the key reasons behind such rapid evolution. The Chinese EV subsidy for 2018 encourages automobile makers to produce EVs with a higher nickel content in the battery because this helps achieve the longer driving range and increased energy density.To be eligible for the latest EV subsidy launched in February, EVs must have a minimum driving range of 150km, up from a minimum of 100km in 2017. Additionally, the higher driving range that each EV has, the higher the subsidy the automobile maker could get, with the...