Envia will be launching onto the market what it calls High Capacity Manganese Rich (HCMR) cathode material, one which promises to bring to the EV market two essential attributes: higher storage capacity and lower cost. In turn, this would translate into a lower cost for the EVs which will use the technology and a higher range at the same time.
According to Envia, the batteries it will produce using these materials are the first to use the respective cathode and anode materials and be ready for the market. To prove it, Envia will roll out test batteries on GM vehicles, without naming what those vehicles are.
"Offering Envia's HCMR technology for pilot vehicle programs is a major milestone in the commercialization of higher-performance lithium ion cells," said Sujeet Kumar, Envia Systems founder.
"HCMR is the first next-generation solution to leverage Argonne National Laboratory's composite cathode material, licensed by Envia."
In addition to the money to be provided by GM for Envia, the company is also using the cash provided by the United States Advanced Battery Consortium (USABC - $3.65 million), the Department of Energy (through the ARPA-E program - $4 million) and by the California Energy Commission ($1 million).
"The future of the automotive industry is heavily invested in the affordability of EVs and PHEVs," said Michael Sinkula, co-founder of Envia Systems.
"Energy storage is the key element to reducing costs. Throughout the past three years, Envia has assembled a unique, interdisciplinary team whose expertise in material sciences and electrochemistry has been crucial in attacking the challenge of high-density, low-cost energy storage."
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