It is truly amazing to see the rapid growth of battery production and technology advancements in
China.
We were precluded by Covid for three years from traveling to CATL [Contemporary Amperex Technology Ltd.] which are our joint venture partner for
Asia,
Europe and the Middle East regions, and upon our return the expansion of their production facilities was incredible to witness and tour. The cost reduction and volume increase of production year on year is vast.
On April 21, 2025, CATL unveiled three groundbreaking EV battery products at its inaugural Super Tech Day: The Freevoy Dual-Power Battery, Naxtra - the world's first mass produced sodium-ion battery, and the second-generation Shenxing Superfast Charging Battery, as well as an integrated 24V start/stop Naxtra battery for heavy-duty trucks.
CATL's Sodium Ion Naxtra Battery: Breaking Performance Limits, Powering the Future of Energy
CATL's Naxtra Battery breaks through the performance boundaries of the material itself, achieving the mass production of sodium-ion batteries for the first time. With sodium's inherent safety and abundant reserves, it efficiently reduces dependence on lithium resources and strengthens the foundation of new energy technologies, while promoting energy utilization from "single resource dependence" to "energy freedom".
The Naxtra Battery product line includes two categories: the Naxtra passenger EV Battery and the Naxtra 24V Heavy-Duty Truck Integrated Start-Stop Battery. Both are capable of performing across the full temperature range from -40°C to +70°C, redefining the extreme temperature limitations of batteries. The Naxtra passenger EV Battery retains 90% usable power at -40°C. In an extremely low state of charge with only 10% SOC remaining, the Naxtra passenger EV Battery can still achieve no significant power degradation at a temperature of -40 ℃.
CATL's Naxtra passenger EV Battery achieves an energy density of 175Wh/kg, the highest among sodium-ion batteries worldwide, and comparable to LFP batteries. It offers a 500-kilometer range and can achieve over 10,000 cycles, which significantly reduces maintenance costs. In terms of safety, the Naxtra Battery eliminates combustion-supporting factors at the material level, thus achieving a transformative breakthrough from "passive defense" to "intrinsic safety".
There is no American counterpart in technology to either BYD and CATL scales of production. Chinese are top of the
game.
The Sodium Ion battery technology is advancing rapidly and largescale production is slated in a year or two. Endless quantity of sodium from
salt and it is realized as a brine by product of desalination of
water which pure
water production we are now pursuing as a byproduct of
HVAC and low temperature industrial
cooling.
CATL is the leader of our consortium for design and manufacturing of New Energy
Propulsion and Drive Systems [motors, controllers, suspension,
transmission, battery] for the Chinese
electric vehicle industry. We have enjoyed the relationship since 2010 when they first came to Montana to learn about our
motor and
generator technologies and to engage us in the joint development of EV
propulsion systems. I
recall the five of us Montanans, taking their engineers on a pontoon
boat ride on Flathead Lake. It was a beautiful day and we stayed out late into the night. The Chinese had never seen stars before and stayed up all night to view our Big Sky. They still are in awe of viewing the sky when they come to visit so we arrange to move away from the town lights. The late nights cause for abrupt power naps during their day when they place their
head down on the conference table and snooze for a few minutes in the middle of a discussion or presentation.
The geopolitics between the
USA and
China have soured and made navigating the relationship more challenging. We can count of a visit from the FBI every time we have travel between the countries, either their coming to The Last Best Place or we going to Ningda and fully expect that our conversations and
email correspondence is monitored by both governments which causes one to be a bit cautious of what is spoken and written; best leaving some subjects to face-to-face conversation. The names Trump and Xi are best not stated but many of those subjects come up in out of office conversations when our Congressional delegation [US Representatives and Senators] swing by and ask us to go to lunch when they are passing through our town. One can say things in a restaurant or bar when sharing drinks that are not stated on the telephone or other electronic means of communication.
Our overall policy and intent is simple - make for the market. Produce in the
USA for the USA, produce in China for China, in the EU for the EU, in
India for
India, etc. Localize manufacturing eliminates the strategic reliance issues and the international
trade imbalances, tariffs and logistical issues. Share knowledge and expertise.
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