Solid State EV batteries in pilot production

Toyota, Nissan, and Samsung have begun pilot production of all-solid-state batteries, reports TrendForce. Production volumes could reach GWh levels by 2027.

Solid-state batteries offer promising improvements in safety and energy density, but they continue to face significant challenges, including high production costs, complex manufacturing processes, and a lack of a mature supply chain.

TrendForce projects that, by 2030, if the scale of all-solid-state battery applications surpasses 10 GWh, cell prices will likely fall to around 14cents/Wh. By 2035, cell prices could decline further to 9-10cents/Wh with rapid, large-scale market expansion.

SSBs based on different solid-state electrolytes are being developed:

Polymer-based SSBs are relatively mature and offer cost advantages; for example, PEO-based polymer Li-metal SSBs have already been commercialized in parts of Europe. However, polymer-based SSBs still need to adopt composite electrolyte materials with a wider voltage tolerance and higher ionic conductivity to expand commercialisation.

Oxide solid-state electrolytes offer good stability and moderate costs but are difficult to process. Additionally, the “solid-solid” contact between the electrolyte and the cathode/anode active materials leads to higher internal resistance.

Sulfide-based SSBs show particularly strong potential due to their ionic conductivity, which is closest to, and may even exceed, that of liquid electrolytes. This performance potential has attracted the attention of companies including Toyota, Samsung SDI, LGES, SK On, CATL, and BYD.

However, sulfide electrolyte materials remain costly, are unstable in air, and are highly sensitive to moisture, necessitating strict environmental controls and adding complexity to the production process.

Although key performance indicators such as charge-discharge rates and cycle life have not yet reached commercialisation standards—and current costs remain uncompetitive with liquid li-ion batteries—SSB costs will improve significantly as production scales up.