Author: Nathan Reed
Nathan Reed
Nathan Reed is a battery industry business journalist at EVMagz.com, reporting on investment trends, gigafactory expansion, supply chain strategy, pricing dynamics, and corporate developments across the global battery sector. His coverage focuses on how manufacturers, raw material suppliers, and technology firms are scaling production to meet rising demand from the electric vehicle and energy storage markets.
South Korea’s LG Energy Solution (LGES) said on Wednesday that Ford Motor has terminated an electric vehicle battery supply agreement valued at about $6.5 billion, citing changes in policy and a weaker outlook for EV demand. LGES said in a regulatory filing that the cancellation followed formal notice from Ford after the U.S. automaker decided to halt production of some electric vehicle models. The decision reflects broader adjustments by Ford in response to policy changes under the Trump administration and slower-than-expected growth in EV adoption. See also: LG Energy Solution Secures New $1.4 Billion Battery Deal with Mercedes-Benz The battery…
Volkswagen Group’s battery unit PowerCo SE has commissioned its gigafactory in Salzgitter and produced its first Unified battery cells made entirely in Europe, marking a milestone for the automaker and the region’s battery industry. The start of production makes Volkswagen the first European carmaker to establish in-house battery cell development and manufacturing at scale on the continent. The initial cells will now be delivered to Volkswagen Group brands for final road testing, with series deployment planned from next year in the Electric Urban Car Family across Volkswagen, Škoda and SEAT/CUPRA. See also: Volkswagen Set to Reduce Battery Subsidiary PowerCo Budget…
Stellantis has been granted a patent for a new battery safety system designed to limit thermal runaway in electric vehicles, outlining a foam-based mechanism intended to suppress overheating before it spreads through a battery pack. According to the patent filing, the system integrates fire-retardant foam channels and deployment components directly into the battery pack. When sensors detect abnormal heat in a battery cell, the system is designed to release insulating foam around the affected area, isolating the cell and slowing or preventing a chain reaction that could lead to a battery fire. The design differs from conventional approaches that rely…
WeLion New Energy Starts IPO Process, Could Become China’s First Listed Solid-State Battery Firm
By Nathan Reed
Beijing WeLion New Energy Technology Co Ltd has begun the process for an initial public offering, raising the prospect of becoming the first solid-state battery company to list on China’s A-share market, according to regulatory filings. The company has completed IPO tutoring and filing registration with the Beijing bureau of the China Securities Regulatory Commission and plans to seek a listing on ChiNext, the Shenzhen exchange’s growth-focused board, the regulator’s website shows. If approved, the listing would mark the first time a solid-state battery developer has gone public on China’s domestic equity market. Founded in 2016, WeLion New Energy focuses…
China will relax export and import controls on certain lithium thionyl chloride batteries from Jan. 1, 2026, under a joint notice issued on Friday by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Commerce and the General Administration of Customs. The policy change applies to individual batteries or battery packs containing no more than 1 kilogram of thionyl chloride, a chemical currently listed under China’s controlled substances regulations. See also: China Plans Revised Incentive Framework for 2026, Signalling Slower Support for NEV Purchases Authorities said such products pose limited risk because the chemical content is small and difficult…
AVILOO and Lectrium Partner to Bring Independent Battery Diagnostics to U.S. Dealership Listings
By Nathan Reed
AVILOO, an Austria-based battery diagnostics company with U.S. operations in Denver, has partnered with Brooklyn-based Lectrium to integrate independent battery health reporting into automotive retail platforms across the United States. The collaboration aims to address one of the main obstacles in the pre-owned electric vehicle (EV) market: uncertainty about traction battery condition. Under the partnership, AVILOO’s diagnostic technology will be embedded into Lectrium’s digital merchandising tools, enabling dealerships to display verified battery State of Health (SoH) on vehicle detail pages. The system relies on the AVILOO FLASH Test, which provides cell-level analysis and SoH results in about three minutes without…
LG Energy Solution (LGES) has secured a new electric vehicle (EV) battery supply contract with Mercedes-Benz Group AG valued at approximately two trillion won ($\text{€}1.39$ billion / US$1.4 billion), marking the fourth significant supply agreement between the two companies in less than two years. According to a regulatory filing by the South Korean battery maker on Monday, the new contract covers the supply of batteries to Mercedes-Benz for its North American and European markets. The supply period is slated to run for seven years, from March 1, 2028, to June 30, 2035. LGES noted in the filing that the contract…