The “Sodium-Ion-Battery Deutschland-Forschung – SIB:DE FORSCHUNG” project has officially launched, aiming to assess the viability of sodium-ion battery technology for Europe’s energy and mobility transition.
The initiative seeks to expedite the industrial implementation of this technology, pooling the expertise of 21 national partners from both academia and industry. The Fraunhofer IFAM, which announced the project, emphasized that the consortium’s work will focus on everything from battery material development to large-format cell production.
Sodium-ion batteries have garnered significant attention for their potential advantages over traditional lithium-ion technology. Unlike lithium, sodium is abundant, non-critical, and affordable, making it a promising alternative for reducing reliance on Asian-dominated supply chains.
While some Chinese manufacturers have already introduced sodium-ion batteries to the market, the “SIB:DE FORSCHUNG” project will explore the scalability and competitive performance of active materials for these batteries. It also plans to develop demo cells that can be integrated into existing lithium-ion battery production processes, though challenges such as faster aging and performance degradation remain due to the chemical differences between sodium and lithium.
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Funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), the project has a total budget of around 14 million euros. The project consortium is led by BASF and consists of seven industrial partners, 14 academic institutions, and 42 associated partners from both science and industry.
The initiative is expected to provide critical insights into the feasibility of industrial-scale sodium-ion battery production by 2027, with follow-up work planned under the “SIB:DE ENTWICKLUNG” project. As Fraunhofer IFAM noted, close collaboration between academia and industry will be crucial to the success of the project and the rapid market introduction of sodium-ion technology.