The company has planned for mass production of cost-effective, safer and high-energy density lithium-ion cells
Leading automotive electrical components manufacturer Lucas TVS Ltd. and 24M Technologies, Inc., developer of next generation lithium-ion battery technologies, announced the signing of a license and services agreement to construct one of the first Giga factories in India using 24M Technologies’ innovative and disruptive SemiSolid™ platform technology. The first plant with world-class safety standards will be set up in Thervoy Kandigai, Gummudipundi near Chennai and Lucas TVS expects to build other plants throughout India to support the growing energy storage, electric mobility and lead acid battery replacement markets.
The Chennai plant is expected to begin commercial production in the second half of 2023. Based on the aggressive targets set by the government in the renewable energy and electric mobility space, Lucas TVS plans to grow the capacity of the plant to a globally competitive scale of 10 GWh in two stages. 24M Technologies’ SemiSolid platform has significant benefits as compared to conventional manufacturing processes. The process, protected by more than 80 issued and 100 pending patents, offers a significantly simpler process flow, thus reducing capital costs substantially. The SemiSolid technology enables the production of a thicker electrode, increasing energy density and reducing materials costs.
Beyond its cost advantages, 24M Technologies’ patented cell design enhances safety, reliability, and traceability by virtually eliminating potential metal contamination, the most common cause of shorts in conventional lithium-ion cells. In addition to these benefits, the SemiSolid electrode eliminates the use of binders and thereby enables the simplest and most efficient recycling of rejected or end-of-life cells. These advantages make it a preferred choice for demanding customers in critical areas such as energy storage and electric mobility.
The unique SemiSolid platform offers innovative solutions to the fast-growing storage and electric mobility markets and the emerging lead acid battery replacement markets and is already seeing large capacities being planned globally in Japan, ASEAN, Europe, East Asia and the US. Lucas TVS will be the first to introduce SemiSolid lithium-ion batteries produced in India and specifically designed for the Indian market. Lucas TVS plans to build products using different chemistries in pouch and prismatic cell formats with high energy density. The products will meet customer needs in e-mobility, stationary energy storage, including grid-scale markets, and lead acid battery replacement.
Lucas TVS will also be offering complete battery solutions to those customers who need them. “Lucas TVS believes in investing in the next-generation technologies, which is why we chose to partner with 24M Technologies,” stated T K Balaji, Chairman and Managing Director, Lucas TVS. “We are confident that their innovative SemiSolid platform technology will enable us to provide our customers affordable e-mobility, lead acid battery replacement and storage solutions with improved quality and best-in-class safety,” he added. The company’s products include starter motors, alternators, automotive motors, EV traction motors, BLDC motors for consumer and industrial applications as well as various controllers and sensors. Lucas TVS has been at the forefront of introduction of high-technology products to meet the demanding needs of the fast-growing automotive industry in India.
“We are delighted to partner with a market leader like Lucas TVS with a 60+ year track record of performance as a leading provider of electromagnetic solutions to the mobility market,” commented Naoki Ota, Chief Executive Officer, 24M Technologies. “Our innovative SemiSolid technology and ongoing research and development investments will support Lucas TVS’ ambition to become a leader in the energy storage space for mobility, lead acid battery replacement, storage and grid-scale markets in India,” he added. By re-inventing the design of the battery cell as well as the manufacturing method, 24M Technologies solves the critical, decades-old challenge associated with the world’s preferred energy storage chemistry: reducing its high cost while improving its safety, reliability and performance.
