The Chinese beat Tesla: they created the first battery for electric cars without cobalt

The goal of switching to electric vehicles is to reduce humanity's dependence on fossil fuels and provide

a more sustainable future.The problem is that the lithium-ion batteries needed by the industry are made using heavy metals. For example, cobalt. It is quite scarce on Earth, and it is usually mined in regions where human rights and labor standards are violated. Mining development also cannot be called sustainable - it harms the environment.

This is why, for example, Tesla works hardto close the recycling loop for electric vehicle batteries. Earlier this month, the electric vehicle automaker announced that the company could recycle 92% of its battery cell materials. Firms such as Tesla, IBM and Panasonic are also redoubling efforts to produce electric batteries without the use of heavy metals.

Now the Chinese company SVTOL, a subsidiaryAutomaker Great Wall Motors showed off an 82.5 kWh battery in a car at the Chengdu Auto Show. Company representatives claim that its battery for electric cars provides a range of approximately 600 km on a single charge; while the car accelerates from zero to 100 km/h in less than five seconds.

The battery of an electric vehicle uses modulesThe MEB is a standard platform, has aerospace-grade thermal insulation materials and is lightweight in design. SVTOL says its package has passed performance testing and safety testing, and test data such as temperature rise far exceeds national standards. The new battery is expected to appear in cars that go on sale in the Chinese market, but has not given a timetable for when this might happen.

In a press release, SVTOL states that its productis "the first serial production of cobalt-free battery in the world." However, this is not the first firm to make such claims. Tesla announced last year that it is developing cobalt-free lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries for its Model 3 vehicles in China. Panasonic also said last year that it was on the cusp of commercializing cobalt-free batteries through a partnership with Tesla.

However, SVTOL states that its kit, inunlike Tesla, it has already "passed extensive performance and safety tests, and test data such as thermal runaway far exceed national standards."

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