General Motors (GM) is developing a 500-600 miles electric vehicle (EV) battery with a longer life span and lower production costs. The company announced that this battery is more advanced compared to its Ultium brand that was introduced in March this year.
In early April, General Motors and Honda agreed to jointly develop two all-new electric vehicles for Honda, based on GM’s global EV platform and powered by the proprietary Ultium batteries, which can deliver up to 400 miles of range. These batteries will be produced in Ohio through a joint venture between GM and LG Chem.
The exteriors and interiors of the new EVs will be designed by Honda and manufactured at GM’s plants in North America. Sales are expected to begin in 2023 for the 2024 model year in Honda’s US and Canadian markets.
Apart from Ultium and the new battery, Doug Parks, head of global product development and purchasing at GM, said that the carmaker was close to developing another EV battery that could last a million miles. The news comes close on the heels of a similar announcement made by Tesla and Chinese batteries supplier CATL in May.
Cars usually do not operate for a million miles, but the long-lasting batteries could be recycled or used as energy storage units for supporting the electric grip. Moreover, the materials and chemicals used in the batteries will not require the development of a new recycling process.
GM president Mark Reuss stated in March that GM will target selling one million EV’s annually between China and US markets by 2025.