Will CATL's "Xiaoyao" Mark the Beginning of a New Era for Sodium Batteries?

SMM October 24th News,

On October 24, 2024, CATL officially launched the new "Xiaoyao" super range-extended/hybrid power battery online.

Taking this opportunity, let's think about it: with CATL's Xiaoyao, could the carefree days of sodium batteries be beginning?

Key points: 20.241 million double 024, sodium-ion battery, Xiaoyao battery, CATL, 400 km, 10 minutes 280 km, 4C, -40℃ -30℃ -20℃, 30 new car models, 20,000 yuan

Core viewpoint: Sodium calls

Leapfrog development: The large-scale application of sodium batteries in NEVs is skipping the A00-class cars and accelerating to higher-level NEVs. The road for sodium batteries to be purely used in NEVs is getting wider.
Leader paving the way: The new sodium-ion battery from the leader in the new energy battery industry, with the leader in front, the followers will closely follow, increasing the popularity of the sodium battery industry.
Exploring new models: The competition between sodium and lithium may develop into a trend of lithium-sodium integration, coexisting and co-developing.
Four main material speculations: The cathode active material might be NFPP, which has good low-temperature performance. CATL once focused on whether its single mt cost could be reduced to 18,000 yuan; the anode might be products from Kureha, Kaijin, or CATL's 21C team, but considering the possibility of long-term large-scale supply, domestic materials are more competitive; the separator might be provided by Enjie; the electrolyte formula is provided by CATL and produced by electrolyte companies through tolling activity.
Breaking through the fog, the future is still promising:

Jumping high VS running far: Comparing the aggressive LMFP released by CATL in H2 2023, which has been running for more than a year, it seems a bit lost. Whether Xiaoyao is truly carefree needs time to verify.
Strong technology VS high voice: The market's attention to CATL's Xiaoyao battery is immense, with a trend of gathering responses. However, the sodium battery market cannot easily cross the hesitation into a new chapter just by sodium calls. The technological breakthrough of sodium batteries also needs to look at the progress of other sodium battery companies, such as BYD, Gotion High-tech, EVE, Penghui, Highstar, Zhongke Haina, etc., especially BYD, which is also brewing a big move.
Raw materials VS supply chain: Currently, the material prices of sodium batteries are not low, the industry chain has not yet completed large-scale mass production, and the supply chain is expected to be perfected. Sodium battery products need to reduce costs to be widely applied.
Mass production VS high performance: At present, mass production is insufficient, and performance needs the four main materials to be matched and integrated to form the optimal solution for the sodium battery industry. Whether the cathode has a main route to support all the way? Whether the anode can produce stable, consistent products... These all require time and the efforts of many practitioners to achieve.
The following is the carefree of Xiaoyao. Features: novel, safe, convenient, reliable, cost-effective!

On Thursday, October 24, 2024, CATL officially launched the new "Xiaoyao" super range-extended/hybrid power battery online, designed specifically for range-extended and hybrid car models, with the slogan "Because of Xiaoyao, so carefree."

The "Xiaoyao" battery claims to be the world's first range-extended/hybrid battery with a pure electric range of over 400 km and 4C ultra-fast charging capability.

This battery adopts "nano-level protective layer" technology, with cathode active materials using high-activity excited state particle technology, supporting multi-level power control. In terms of charging performance, it supports "charging for 10 minutes to replenish over 280 km" in the 400 km range configuration.

In extreme environments, the Xiaoyao battery performs excellently: it supports discharge in -40℃ extreme cold environments and charging in -30℃ environments. Due to the use of sodium-ion battery technology, it has stronger cold resistance. Additionally, this battery pioneered the lithium-sodium AB battery system integration technology, increasing low-temperature range by 5%; using sodium-ion batteries as the SOC detection benchmark, the pure electric range increased by over 10 km. The BMS technology for precise full-temperature range power calculation improves system control accuracy by 30%.

In terms of safety performance, the Xiaoyao battery is equipped with second-generation no thermal diffusion technology and pioneered smoke and high-voltage active isolation technology, reducing the defect rate of battery cells to PPB levels. Moreover, this battery supports bidirectional interaction with the power grid, achieving reverse power supply functionality.

The Xiaoyao battery is now applied in brands such as Li Auto, Avatr, Deepal, Changan Qiyuan, and Neta Auto. It is expected that in 2024, IM Motors and Chery will also launch multiple car models equipped with this battery, with a total of about 30 new car models benefiting from this advanced battery technology.