TOKYO — Japan’s top automaker Toyota agreed Thursday to work with Idemitsu, a major Japanese oil company, on technology for mass production of solid-state batteries that promise to be a key component in future electric vehicles.
“With repeated efforts involving trial and error, we have succeeded in developing a material that is more stable and less prone to crack,” Toyota Chief Executive Koji Sato told reporters in Tokyo, after shaking hands with his counterpart at Idemitsu.The future of electric vehicles looms over negotiations in the US autoworkers strike“The future of mobility lies in the tie-up between the auto and energy sectors, including this innovation hailing from Japan,” he said.
Idemitsu has been researching basic technologies for all-solid-state batteries since 2001. Toyota started in 2006. Kito said recent innovations will help the batteries now in the works overcome the edge lithium-ion batteries have had over EVs.