Toyota Motor Corp, the world's largest automaker, will invest 1.5 trillion yen ($13.6 billion) in battery development and supply systems over the next decadeTo maintain the competitive advantage of its electric and hybrid cars in terms of price and durability.
Although Toyota did not disclose details of any plans for the battery plant or the location of its investment, Masahiko Maeda, the company's chief product director, saidToyota Motor Corp will invest nearly Y1,000bn to build a total of 70 production lines for electric vehicles by 2030.
Toyota aims to improve the car's electricity consumption (a measure of electricity consumption per kilometer) by 30%, starting with Toyota's bZ4X compact SUV. Toyota hopes to halve battery costs by 2025-2030 by taking advantage of its advantages in developing cars and batteries. Toyota's previously announced plans for electric vehicles show that the company hopes to sell 8 million vehicles that use partial or full electricity by 2030, of which about 2 million will be powered entirely by batteries or fuel cells. the remaining 6 million will be gasoline-electric or plug-in hybrids.
Toyota says its goal of starting producing solid-state batteries by around 2025 has not changed. Toyota is still on the right track for the development of solid-state batteries. However, Maeda admits that the short battery life is a serious disadvantage of solid-state batteries.Efforts are still being made to solve this problem and to find the best material. It is not optimistic yet, and there are challenges. Identifying "short battery life" as a problem brings Toyota one step closer to commercialization.The company will use solid-state batteries in hybrid vehicles such as the Prius to bring the technology to market faster.
Toyota has a technological lead in solid-state batteries. Solid-state batteries have a higher energy density, can be recharged faster, have longer mileage, and are safer and less prone to fire than liquid batteries currently in use. However, it is difficult to produce solid-state batteries on a large scale because they are expensive to manufacture and are prone to cracks when they expand and contract during use.
Toyota, which launched the Prius gasoline-electric hybrid, which is popular in the market, is now working hard to expect the first full-battery car next year. Market analysis believes that Toyota, as an automobile giant, is slow in the process of transition to pure electric vehicles.
At present, many countries around the world actively introduce relevant industrial policies and regulations, improve the electric vehicle industry chain, accelerate the promotion of electric vehicles, and promote low-carbon environmental protection travel. The major car companies and battery companies have increased their power to lay out electric vehicles and their industrial chains, especially the power battery market.
Tesla, Inc., the leader of electric cars, says car sales are expected to grow by an average of 50 per cent a year in the future. Tesla, Inc. delivered about 500000 cars in 2020 and is expected to deliver more than 800000 in 2021. On Battery Day last September, Tesla, Inc. unveiled 4680 electrodeless ear large cylindrical battery technology. Compared with the 2170 battery previously used by Tesla, the 4680 battery is larger. According to official data, the energy density of the 4680 battery will be increased by five times, the output power will be increased by six times, and the cost per kilowatt hour will be reduced by 14%. The mileage of a car equipped with this battery can be increased by 16%. The market expects the new technology to begin mass production in 2023.
Volkswagen plans to spend about $80 billion on electrification and self-driving between now and 2030. Volkswagen says electric products will account for 50% of sales in 2030. Volkswagen has also invested in QuantumScape (QS), the leader in solid-state batteries, with a commitment of $300m and a joint venture with it for the commercial production of batteries. In July, QS announced that it was pushing ahead with 10-layer battery testing, an important step towards the commercial deployment of solid-state batteries.
In June, General Motors Co announced an investment of $8 billion to build two battery factories for electric cars. Some of the batteries are made for partner HMC.
Ford announced a battery joint venture with South Korea's SK Innovation in May. The total expenditure on electric vehicles is expected to be about $30 billion from 2021 to 2025.