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Ford, BMW lead US$130-million investing round in solid-state battery startup

The new technology offers more energy density and better safety due to a lack of flammable components

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May 05, 2021  •  May 6, 2021  •  2 minute read  •  Join the conversation
A Solid Power manufacturing engineer holds two 20 ampere hour (Ah) all solid-state battery cells for the BMW Group and Ford Motor Company, at Solid Power's pilot production line in Louisville, Colorado, U.S. April 23, 2021.
A Solid Power manufacturing engineer holds two 20 ampere hour (Ah) all solid-state battery cells for the BMW Group and Ford Motor Company, at Solid Power's pilot production line in Louisville, Colorado, U.S. April 23, 2021. Photo by Will McKenna for Solid Power /Reuters

Ford and BMW are leading a US$130-million funding round in a solid-state battery startup, Solid Power, as carmakers push to lower the cost of electric vehicles by investing in the development of affordable but powerful rechargeable batteries, the companies said on Monday.

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The Series B investment round, which includes venture capital firm Volta Energy Technologies, allows Solid Power to expand in-house manufacturing capabilities and positions the battery maker to eventually supply future EVs, possibly by the end of the decade according to BMW battery cell technology chief Peter Lamp. Solid Power declined to say at what level the funding round values the company.

“The partnerships and the capital that comes along with it are really going to put us on a good footing to execute on our road map, which simply speaking is qualifying this technology for vehicle use and getting them into vehicles in the not-too-distant future,” Solid Power Chief Executive and co-founder Doug Campbell said in an interview.

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Solid-state battery technology involves a high-capacity energy storage device that improves on lithium-ion batteries, replacing the liquid or gel-form electrolyte with a solid, conductive material. Among other benefits, the new technology offers more energy density and better safety due to a lack of flammable components. Solid Power has said its technology can deliver 50 per cent more energy density than current lithium-ion batteries.

However, solid-state battery technology is more expensive than lithium-ion cell technology. It also must prove it can operate and remain durable in the real world, and must increase its scale to meet industry demand.

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Monday’s announcement marks the second investment in Solid Power for Ford and Volta Energy. Both participated in the US$26-million Series A round in 2018 that included Hyundai and Samsung Electronics.

Solid Power, based near Denver, raised US$5 million in convertible debt from BMW iVentures earlier this year. Its partnership with the German automaker began in 2016.

Following the latest investments, Ford and BMW will own equal, unidentified stakes in Solid Power, which was established in 2012 as a spinout from the University of Colorado Boulder, Campbell said.

Toyota, which has called the technology a “game changer,” plans to introduce solid-state batteries on an electrified platform by 2025. Another solid-state battery startup is Volkswagen-backed QuantumScape, which aims to introduce its battery in 2024.

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