Toyota Claims Solid-State BEV Battery Breakthrough
Toyota claims to have developed commercially viable solid-state batteries that it will roll out into its future model line-up promising longer range, improved performance at a cheaper cost.
Reuters reports that the Japanese carmaker said it aims to launch these next-generation batteries from 2026. It also said it was developing a method to mass produce solid-state batteries, which it aims to commercialize in 2027-2028.
The automaker said it would produce an BEV with a more efficient lithium-ion battery which would have a range of 1,000 km (621 miles), a claim only so far exceeded by specialist solar assisted tricycle maker, Aptera. Toyota did not detail expected costs or place of manufacture of its new long-range BEV, nor did it state where it would make the next-generation solid-state batteries it has said were moving toward development or disclose required investment.
The automaker also announced other technologies that it plans to deploy to reduce costs for its EVs and batteries, such as the use a “self-propelling” assembly line and Giga casting, similar to the system adopted by Tesla. Toyota’s BEV Factory, established in May, aims to produce about 1.7M vehicles by 2030, about half of the 3.5M BEVs it aims to sell annually by that year.
Takero Kato, president of new Toyota EV unit BEV Factory, in a video posted on the automaker’s YouTube channel, said: “What we want to achieve is to change the future with BEVs. We will launch the next-generation battery EVs globally and as a full line-up on the market from 2026.”
— Paul Myles is a seasoned automotive journalist based in Europe. Follow him on Twitter @Paulmyles_
