Stepping Forward, BYD Starts Construction Of Sodium Ion Battery Factory In China

JAKARTA - The leading electric vehicle manufacturer from China, BYD, which also produces EV batteries, wants to move further in the environmentally friendly vehicle segment. They officially started the construction of their first sodium ion battery factory in China.

Quoting from the Carnewschina page, Sunday, January 7, 2024, this Chinese brand invests big numbers with an ambitious plan to achieve an annual battery capacity of 30 GWh.

Although lithium-ion batteries are currently the main component of vehicles, some companies are known to be developing new chemicals, namely ion sodium.

Sodium ions are capable of producing batteries at lower prices, wider range, faster charging, and less use of raw materials.

As is known, sodium ion batteries offer cheaper alternatives than lithium, but have lower energy density.

The battery is very useful in small, low-cost cars or two-wheeled vehicles that do not require higher energy density.

This step taken by BYD is also the answer to the JAC Group, which had previously started making its first sodium ion-powered electric vehicle.

In fact, the first model of the vehicle was launched from last week's production line and deliveries are expected to begin this month.

Based on information from the Deputy Chief Engineer of JAC Group, Xia Shunli, the sodium ion battery will be a good solution to popularize more electric vehicles.

Apart from JAC, another brand, namely the Jialing Motors Group, also announced that the mass production of electric vehicles powered by ion sodium batteries has begun. The car is called the JMEV EV3.