Stellantis and Arkema, a world leader in chemicals, recently announced a partnership with startup Tiamat for a major investment in the development of sodium batteries. This cooperation is aimed at attracting 22 million euros for the construction of a special plant in France.

Tiamat aims to create a 5 GWh plant dedicated entirely to the production of sodium batteries. Arkema specified that the first tranche of 0.7 GWh could be put into operation by the end of 2025, paving the way for large-scale production of these batteries, which have been announced as “innovative”.

The battery of the future?

Interest in this new technology is largely based on sodium’s ability to replace cobalt and lithium, materials traditionally used in electric vehicle batteries. Sodium, available in large quantities, offers significant advantages in terms of sustainability and raw material control.

Investments in sodium batteries represent a long-term strategy to overcome supply constraints of cobalt and lithium. This alternative could not only reduce costsbut also offer better performance at low temperatures and faster recharging capacity.

Need to satisfy Stellantis ambitions?

Sodium batteries are also poised to be a key solution to achieving Stellantis’ ambitious electric vehicle goals.

By 2030, the manufacturer plans to introduce battery electric vehicles 100% of passenger car sales in Europe and 50% of passenger car sales and light trucks in the United States. To achieve these goals, Stellantis must provide a battery capacity of about 400 GWh per year.

Tiamat is not the only company exploring this path. Swedish battery specialist Northvolt plans to open a plant in Germany, while Chinese giant CATL has already launched its first generation of sodium-ion batteries in 2021.

Read also:
Fiat beats Peugeot in Stellantis
What is the future of Opel in the Stellantis group?
Peugeot 208: how many kilometers to sell it?