Maxell first in the world to mass produce high-capacity all-solid-state batteries

International Business News – Maxell, a major Japanese battery company, will mass produce large-capacity all-solid-state batteries for industrial equipment for the first time in the world. The products will have a durability of about 10 years and are highly heat resistant. The first production will begin this summer for factory robots. Japanese companies are leading the way in the development of all-solid-state batteries, which are expected to replace current lithium-ion batteries and become the mainstream of next-generation batteries for applications such as pure electric vehicles (EVs). The related market is gradually taking shape toward formal commercialization.

All-solid-state batteries use a solid-state electrolyte instead of the liquid electrolyte of lithium-ion batteries. With the same size, the storage capacity can be increased three times and the risk of fire is lower. The production cost is thought to be more than four times that of lithium-ion batteries. Currently, only small-capacity products used in wearable terminals, etc. are in mass production.

While reducing costs, Maxell has established mass production technology by using technology to uniformly mix and seal materials cultivated in the battery manufacturing process. The product uses “sulfide-based” materials for high-consumption applications, and can be used in industrial applications because it has a significantly higher storage capacity than ordinary “oxide-based” products.

The company will invest 2 billion yen in the Kyoto plant (located in Oyamazaki-cho, Kyoto Prefecture) to establish a production line. The goal is to achieve sales of 30 billion yen by FY2030.

In the field of all-solid-state battery technology development, Japanese companies are in the lead. In terms of the number of patents related to all-solid-state batteries worldwide, Japanese companies such as Toyota and Panasonic Holdings occupy four of the top five positions. Overseas companies such as Samsung Electronics of South Korea are also catching up, and the challenge for Japanese companies is to maintain their advantage in mass production of products for pure electric vehicles.