CATL Chief Manufacturing Officer Ni Jun stated that all-solid-state batteries remain in the conceptual stage. He noted that large-scale commercialization is at least five years away due to unresolved technical challenges, specifically regarding the interface between solid electrodes and electrolytes.
The primary issue involves maintaining contact during charge and discharge cycles, as volume changes often disrupt the interface. CATL Chairman Zeng Yuqun previously classified current solid-state technology at level four on a nine-level maturity scale, far from the level nine required for mass production.
Instead of solid-state batteries, CATL is prioritizing sodium-ion and condensed-matter batteries. These technologies are compatible with existing lithium-ion production lines, requiring minimal equipment modifications. The company plans to incorporate this compatibility into its new production lines starting next year.
Addressing the trend of automakers developing their own batteries, Ni Jun emphasized the high professional barriers in the industry. He noted that manufacturing power batteries requires strict consistency standards, as hundreds or thousands of cells in a vehicle must perform uniformly to ensure system reliability.
